As one industry insider stated in an email, Froogle’s new layout is “very comparison engine-esque!”

Froogle quietly updated its site yesterday. Scroll down for before and after pictures. There are a number of changes, but here are the basics:

1) The sponsored links (Google AdWords) are no longer flooding the right side of the page (note to Froogle: you need to update your About Us section to reflect this change), but rather have been more elegantly placed across the top of most Froogle pages (the ads do not show up on Merchant Ratings pages). This simple change makes the site a hell of a lot cleaner.

2) Search result pages and product pages have been streamlined and now look more like the pages of other comparison engines. See pictures below.

3) Google has moved beyond text links! Froogle is using a ‘Compare prices’ button as opposed to the standard text link.

4) If you type in iPod, an iPod actually comes up first. This is a major improvement. In the past, iPod accessories would show up above iPods. Hmmm…maybe Froogle has finally worked out some relevancy issues.

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