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YouTube Begins Broad Rollout of Player Redesign and New Iconography Across Mobile

The refresh prioritizes visibility through bolder icons with subtler on-screen controls.

Overview

  • The updated design is widely appearing in YouTube for Android and iOS with app version 20.42, though availability varies by account and device.
  • Icons across the app now use thicker, rounded outlines to improve legibility in the top and bottom bars and within the player.
  • The player reduces on-screen obstruction with pill-grouped controls in landscape, no background darkening when paused, and a less intrusive double‑tap skip animation.
  • Contextual like effects now appear on eligible videos, such as musical notes on music videos and sport-specific cues on sports clips.
  • YouTube Music is receiving the matching icon set on Android, iOS, and the web, including the new elongated thumbs for like and dislike; some users can trigger updates by force‑stopping and relaunching.