It seems that Google has very busy as of late with its recent launch of Google+, Google+1, its new Gmail interface, and last Thursday Google rolled-out its new (and I believe improved) interface on YouTube. Currently, they are in the experimental phase which is called ‘Cosmic Panda‘ and contrast to Google+ it is available and open to everyone.
Personally, I like the new dark background compared to the current white background. For me, the dark background gives it a richer and more modern appearance. I also like the fact that there are new editing tools and new page designs that cater to particularly to bloggers and networks. They even have a multi-purpose template they call ‘everything’.
If you’ve installed Google Chrome as your browser, you now have the ability to leave one video open while searching for others, which is a benefit. There are now 4 buttons below the player that allow you to switch video sizes, and even better, viewers can toggle back and forth to view comments or suggested videos.
What I don’t like about the new interface is that Google has elected not to change the controllers under the video. The ability to skip forward or backward with the click of a button would have been a nice addition. For me, sometimes it can be a bit annoying having to drag the slide-bar back and forth to fast forward or rewind the video.
Regardless, overall I think it’s a noticeable improvement compared to YouTube’s current interface.
What do you think? Feel free to try it out yourself. Also, there is a blue ‘feedback’ (left side-bar) button.. Google would like for you to send them your feedback on the new videos, playlist, and channels experience.
If you don’t like it, you can always revert back to their existing interface.
