YouTube’s video player looks different. Here’s what changed.
No, you're not imagining it — YouTube looks different.
The Google-owned tech giant debuted a redesigned video player this week, which means that the way your videos look has changed. The company described it as a shift to create a more "expressive and intuitive experience." In practice, this means many of the buttons are more transparent (sound familiar?). The changes aim to make "the viewing experience more visually satisfying while obscuring less content."
These aren't technical terms, but the new player embraces a bubbly, rounded design in lieu of its more pared-down, simplistic past. The buttons also seem much larger, which can feel more obtrusive, even if the transparency makes them less so in reality.
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There are other, smaller changes, too, across the many ways you can watch YouTube — iOS, Android, web, and TV. On a television, for instance, video details moved to the upper-left corner. The double-tap to seek feature has been made "more modern and less intrusive," according to the company. YouTube also introduced a new visual for comment threading, which should make replies easier to follow.
Overall, it's not a massive change to how YouTube works. But the changes are certainly enough to make you pause when firing up a new video on the platform.
Topics YouTube
Tim Marcin is an Associate Editor on the culture team at Mashable, where he mostly digs into the weird parts of the internet. You'll also see some coverage of memes, tech, sports, trends, and the occasional hot take. You can find him on Bluesky (sometimes), Instagram (infrequently), or eating Buffalo wings (as often as possible).
