When Google Quick Search Box (QSB) for Mac was officially released, I was impressed by what it had to offer. It can search anything on your computer by using the Spotlight database, launch any application or individual file, and even open websites or send Twitter updates.  That’s just scratching the surface of what QSB can actually do for you.  It’s a damn useful application, just like it’s half-brother Quicksilver.

Since it’s a search box/application launcher, I disabled Spotlight to do my testing. It didn’t make any sense to me running two applications that can do the same thing at the same time.  Seemed wasteful.  The Spotlight database was not disabled because Google QSB needs it to perform the searches on your computer.  If you have indexing turned off on your computer, you will need to have it enabled again for QSB to work properly.

After I installed Google QSB, I set it to use the same “Command-Space” command that I had been using to launch Spotlight. It only makes sense to use the quick keys you know and love.  QSB, by default, uses a “Command-Command” quick key set, which personally throws me off and launches QSB at random times.  I guess I hold the Command key longer than I realized.  If anything, from my weird habits I’d suggest that the team choose a less risky quick key command by default than hitting a commonly used key twice.

The first thing I noticed was that Google QSB seemed faster. Way faster than Spotlight.  I’d almost say insanely faster when displaying results.  I’m sure there is some sort of reason out there to explain why it is faster than Spotlight, but one would hope that the software built into the operating system would somehow beat a third-party application. Well, now after typing that out, I concede that notion as being my own wishful thinking. I’ll give a few points for QSB for crushing my expectations of a slow application.

Another thing I noticed about QSB is that you could actually change the theme.  You can’t change it too much, but at least you could make QSB whatever color you wanted.  I personally chose a black theme.  Google even included the ability to turn off that annoying “Glossy” theme option.  Another couple points for QSB for not being uglier than I expected.

Finally, the amount of plugins already built into QSB makes it more functional for power users than Spotlight in many ways. For instance, if you want do adjust the volume, just type “volume”.  You will be presented with options for muting or setting the volume at medium.  Another example is geared towards Twitter users (like myself). Simply type a space, enter what you want to “tweet” (I hate that term…), hit “tab” on your keyboard, and send it along to Twitter. Google QSB can even launch Google searches (shock!). Just type what you are looking for, such as “bianchi steel frame” in the box, and select the Google search option. Many points for awesomeness for QSB for the plugins they include.

Overall, I’m just impressed by this new application from Google.  If the worst I have to complain about is a user-changeable feature, then really I’m just looking for things to complain about.  It works as well as Spotlight, but interacts with my browser and other applications more intelligently than Spotlight ever could hope for.  I usually shy away from having more applications installed on my computer than necessary, but QSB has made its way into my suggested install list.