Demoed today at Google I/O, Google has officially released a brand new YouTube app for Android 4.0. The app, which is rolling out today in the Google Play Store, brings Google’s focus on channels to Android.
More specifically, the new YouTube app includes a “guide for instant access to channels” (essentially a navigation panel), a new preload feature that speeds up load times for videos you’re subscribed to (by temporarily cacheing them), and smart TV integration that will allow users to play YouTube channels “on the big screen.” This release follows YouTube’s redesign last year, and echos many of the same sentiments.
This news follows Google’s announcement of brand new YouTube APIs and developer tools, as well as a showcase of some of the most innovative apps built with YouTube.
Here’s more details, from the announcement:
Last year we redesigned YouTube with the goal to make it easy and enjoyable to follow the channels you love. We added a guide to the homepage to quickly access your channel subscriptions and a feed of activity showing you the latest and greatest videos from your favorite YouTube channels. Now in the new YouTube app for Android, we’re bringing that experience to the app, while making YouTube better both on the go and at home.
- Key new features are channel guide, preloading videos from subscribed channels when on WiFi and charging, integrations with YouTube on TVs
- Preloading is an optional setting that works when you have your phone plugged in and on WiFi. This will help you start playing videos from subscribed channels faster, and can also reduce data and battery use.
- Available in 47 countries
TV integration is a particularly interesting new feature, and on this subject Google stated that they are “working to make this broadly available across connected TVs and living room devices, so stay tuned for updates.” That means there’s a chance that the feature wont even require a Google TV.
In case you’re not on Android 4.0, Google says that many of these new features will start to appear on other Android versions in the coming months. Talk about fragmentation.
Check it out via the link below:
For more on Google I/O, check out our post: Everything you need to know about today’s Google I/O event.
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