YouTube has unveiled a series of changes on desktop and mobile, including a new logo and dashboard.
The changes, which launched globally on the desktop site on 29 August, include a new layout (with an optional dark theme), created for a “fresh, simple, and intuitive user experience” that strips back the content around the main screen to focus attention more on the videos themselves.
Developments to the mobile app include the navigation tabs moving to the bottom of the screen for easier usage. Library and Account tabs have also been added for easier access to saved content, users’ own uploads, and the creators they are subscribed to.
Introducing Dark Theme. Grab some popcorn and settle in for a more cinematic experience than ever before! https://t.co/HQ50o6960R (3/6) pic.twitter.com/Rs6Xi17DQ2
— YouTube (@YouTube) August 29, 2017
Playback speed options, as well as the ability to fast-forward or rewind segments of video, have also been included on mobile; double-tapping on the screen jumps the video ten seconds either forwards or backwards as needed.
YouTube has also added a feature that lets users view a row of suggested videos while watching in fullscreen, and YouTube personnel say they are also “working on transforming the area below the player so you can browse videos in totally new ways”.
For the first time in the platform’s 12-year history, YouTube has also changed its logo. A red play button now sits next to the site’s name, whereas previously it would surround the “Tube”.
Now you can speed things up or slow 'em down on your phone. Perfect for spotting Poppy’s clues → https://t.co/HQ50o6960R (2/6) pic.twitter.com/kLr6dxd2C0
— YouTube (@YouTube) August 29, 2017
Neal Mohan, Chief Product Officer for YouTube, has revealed on the website’s blog that there are also plans to allows swiping between videos on the mobile site, which will be implemented in the coming months.
Finally, the YouTube player will automatically adjust to match the orientation of videos. This will mean that portrait videos will no longer have black bars surrounding them to maintain a landscape screen.
More information can be found on YouTube’s blog here.
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