The eagerly anticipated pinch-to-zoom functionality is also coming to iOS and Android phones, YouTube announced.

The company wrote in the blog post, “YouTube just celebrated its 17th birthday earlier this year and we wondered if it was time to give it a small makeover”.

“With pinch to zoom, you can now easily zoom in and out of a video while on your iOS or Android phone. And when you let go, the video stays zoomed in so you can enjoy the rest of the video in greater detail. Give your fingers a rest!” the company added.

YouTube links in video descriptions will become buttons, and regular actions like ‘like’, ‘share’, and ‘download’ will now be styled to minimise distractions in an effort to make the watch page easier on the eyes.

The subscribe button is also receiving a makeover, and while it is no longer red, it is easier to spot and much more accessible to everyone on both the watch and channel pages.

“Colour was a key theme for us during the development phase. We wanted to add vibrancy to our apps without detracting from viewers’ habits, whether that’s enjoying their recommended videos or browsing for new content. After tinkering with several ideas, ambient mode came to life. And when the first design concept was met with ‘overwhelmingly’ positive reactions from users during testing, we knew we were onto something,” YouTube added.

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Users can instruct the voice-assistant to send a text message to a recipient by saying “Alexa, text XYZ.” However, users must ensure the person is added to their phone contact list.

For now, the feature is only available in the US. The Alexa feature will work only if the app is downloaded on Android or powered with an Alexa device. In the earlier version, Alexa was only capable of sending messages to other Alexa-powered devices.

The latest upgrade allows the app to send texts to any messaging device including iPhones.

The following steps will allow users to set up the text feature: Open the Alexa app > select contacts in the conversation tab > select my profile > enable the message feature.

The virtual assistant is also said to come to Windows PCs from HP, ASUS and Acer, “bringing the digital assistance squarely into Microsoft territory,” according to GeekWire. 

Other Alexa-powered devices such as Echo Show can provide videos calls as well. This month, Amazon introduced voice control capabilities for its app on Android. Users can ask questions and access information on topics of interest such as music, smart home, news, weather and much more.

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