YouTube is rolling out, or at least widely testing, a new video player design for its web experience that feels much different.
YouTube has looked, in many ways, roughly the same for a long time. That includes with the video player, which has had basically the same design for years. When changes do arrive, they’re usually met with passionate response. In some cases, UI changes make it through such as the rounded corners redesign that rolled out back in 2023. In other cases, they’re canned due to backlash, like the “Related Videos” redesign that shuffled the whole UI last year.
Over the past 24 hours, give or take, a flood of user reports have popped up regarding a new change to YouTube’s video player, with the web experience adopting a totally new design for video controls. There are enough reports to suggest that Google is rolling this out generally, but it could still be a widescale test too.
The updated design places each UI element into its own bubble, with the whole thing feeling vaguely reminiscent of Apple’s new Liquid Glass design language with its slightly transparent elements and rounded designs. The exact layout varies slightly from person to person, with some having more buttons shown than others.
We’ve not seen this on our own devices yet, implying it’s either a test or a rollout that’s just starting.
Reactions to the redesign seem mixed thus far, but what do you think?
More on YouTube:
- YouTube is testing full-screen AI overviews in video search results [Video]
- YouTube slows down videos for ad blockers, prepares more 30-second unskippable ads
- YouTube is creating a space for Veo 3’s video generation prowess
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