I've been playing around with some compact message card designs, and here are my two final proposals. Let me know what you think!
In both versions, the options button has been removed. On desktop, it was redundant since it was already at the top when you clicked on a conversation. On mobile, where there's no split view, it makes more sense to swipe left on the card to access options, just like with discussions.
(A)
This version is quite similar to the previous iteration, with some adjustments to the elements to save space.
(B)
I see two benefits with this version. First, it makes the date format easier to integrate. Second, although it might not be very noticeable, I've managed to reduce the message list width from 300px to 265px, giving more space to the message stream, which could be an advantage, depending on your perspective.
The width reduction could also be achieved with the other version, but the message preview would be so reduced due to the structure and date/time placement that it would be practically useless in many cases, for example:
That's all, subtle changes, but now when compared, the previous cards seem huge! 😂
