14 DAY TRIAL // Along with Android 4.1 and its very own tablet, Google also updated several key Android apps, like Maps and YouTube. The new YouTube app is quite impressive and a lot slicker than the previous version.
It's also lighter and cleaner. But, in what is surely becoming a trend, the app is Android 4.0-exclusive, like Chrome and probably many other Google apps to come.
The first thing you'll notice about the new app is the new look, which is hard to miss. Interestingly and appropriately, Google took inspiration from the YouTube website and there are plenty of common elements.
Anyone that has used the current YouTube app knows that it looks nothing like the site. A bit of brand coherence is great, especially when both the site and the app now look great.
"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," YouTube explained.
"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," it added.
One thing that Google is trying to accomplish with the new YouTube app is to make users spend more time with it and see it more than just a gateway to viewing videos others share with them.
Rather, Google wants the app to help users discover new stuff so it's putting a big emphasis on the channels you subscribe to as well as recommendations.
Another interesting feature is the ability to preload videos from your feed. If you enable it, videos will be cached on your device while it's charging and the WiFi is on.
Then, when you're out and about, you won't have to worry about connection quality. You'll still need to be connected to the internet to watch these videos though, it's not a complete offline solution.