YouTube’s redesigned video player lands globally with UI and comment-thread upgrades

YouTube is rolling out a set of quality-of-life updates across mobile, web and TV devices starting this week. The headline change is a redesigned video player that reduces on-screen clutter so icons and UI elements obscure less of the video.

Key updates include:

• Redesigned player UI that minimizes visual intrusion and works across mobile, desktop and TV apps.
• Updated double-tap seek that’s “more modern and less intrusive,” according to the announcement.
• Threaded replies in the comments panel for a more focused reading experience.
• Simplified, more visual flow for adding videos to playlists and the Watch Later queue.
• New like-button animations that may appear for some content (e.g., music and sports videos).

Some users have already seen parts of this redesign over the past month as YouTube progressively tested the new player. With this wider rollout, more viewers should notice smoother tab transitions on mobile and cleaner playback controls across devices.

For more details, see the original coverage on Engadget and check YouTube’s official blog for updates: blog.youtube.

Discussion: Have you noticed the new player or the updated comment threading yet — what do you think of the changes?