YouTube Music for Android Implements New Material You Design Elements

As Android 12 switched the style to Material You, many apps (including native ones by Google) also incorporate some elements of it. The recent change in YouTube Music follows the line: in Album and Playlist views, elements of Material You are now seen. The change is rather subtle so you may already have this update on your phone but have not noticed it yet.

In short, as you open any album or playlist, you may notice the formerly rectangular buttons “Shuffle” and “Play” change their appearance.  Now their corners are rounded, so they are rather pill-shaped. This brings the appearance of YouTube Music closer to the whole Material You design, though nothing else is updated.

This update isn’t much to change the entire experience of YouTube Music. But YouTube is known for constantly implementing minor updates, so they accumulate, and in months the app becomes much more usable. Indeed, this may be one of the reasons the service slowly gains more and more popularity, even though for many subscribers it’s just a free bonus to YouTube Premium with its ad-free experience.

A bigger update is just ahead, though. YouTube Music for smartphones is to receive a huge interface upgrade which will enable it to function in landscape mode, just like on tablets. It makes sense, because for many, one of the greatest YouTube Music features is the ability to switch between video and audio versions of the same track. In landscape mode, videos are much more watchable. And this will be the change to highlight one of the strongest advantages of YouTube Music for smartphone users.

Have you noticed the updated buttons before or after reading this? Or hasn’t this update arrived at your device yet? Do you often switch between music videos and pure audio on YouTube Music? We’d like to read your feedback in the comments section!