Google-owned YouTube is now giving a completely new appearance to the YouTube app. According to YouTube, the updated design offers a more contemporary and immersive viewing experience.
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.