Tag: YouTube

Several current Android phones are starting to see the long awaited YouTube HDR content come to them.  YouTube rolled out HDR content at the end of 2016 but to this point, virtually no devices were able to render it.  That has changed throughout the course of 2017 and now several reports indicate that multiple devices are seeing an HDR option on video playback.

For those who don’t know, HDR stands for High Dynamic Range.  Images and video shot in HDR have more contrast, a wider color palette and greater brightness levels.

As for devices that are now reportedly able to show HDR content, it is growing rapidly.

After experimenting with it in the beta channel, then doing a bit of A/B testing, it seems that Google is finally ready to roll out bottom navigation in the YouTube app.  The update is a combination of an app update, which happened last week, and a server-side update, which is happening now.  Assuming you have the former, the later should be coming to you over the course of the next few hours.

Once you have it, gone will be the top tab navigation for Home, Trending, Subscriptions, Shared and Library.  Instead, they are all clearly identified on the bottom of the display in the streaming content app.

A new version of the YouTube app for Android is rolling out in the Play Store, bringing a new double-tap gesture to rewind or advance the video you are watching by 10 seconds.  The new gesture works exactly as you would expect.  If you double-tap the right side of the video you are watching, you will advance 10 seconds into the video.  Double-tap the left side and you go back 10 seconds.  No more having to use the seek bar to try to go forward or get back on a video.

The new feature is something that should make video viewing a bit easier and faster to navigate.

The Google Chrome team has launched an education and troubleshooting set of videos for Chromebooks and Chrome OS on their YouTube channel.  The videos, eight in all, cover a wide range of topics from setting up your Chromebook for the first time to troubleshooting Wi-Fi issues.  Each of the videos range from a couple of minutes to nearly 5 minutes depending on the topic.  While experienced Chromebook and Chrome OS users will find the videos to be basic, for those who are moving from a Windows PC or Mac, they can be a huge time saver when it comes to understanding their new device.

[Note:  While comments on this post are welcome, any post regarding one political party or another will be deleted.]

Regardless of where you stand politically, Google Search has you covered tomorrow.  With Americans going to the polls to decide not only the presidential election but multiple Senate, House or Representatives and other local elections, November 4th every four years is an seemingly endless flow of information.  Google is trying to give you a one-stop-shop for all that information.  On your Android Phone you can type in “Election Results” in Google Search and you will be taken to a comprehensive overview of all the election results for the country and your particular state.

Starting when the polls close on Election Day, you will be able to find U.S. election results integrated right into your Google searches in over 30 languages around the world. You’ll also be able to see detailed updates and results of the Presidential, Senatorial, Congressional, Gubernatorial races as well as state-level referenda and ballot propositions.

But, if you want live streaming of information, Google has an answer for you there too.  YouTube.

Google is preparing in a big way for next Tuesday’s big Google Event.  Not only has there been a huge amount of advertising around the event, the company has already setup their YouTube channel for the event.  That means that you will be able to watch the event live for yourself.  I personally love the fact that they are doing this and making all of their announcements known to everyone.  And, given that it is on YouTube, that means you can watch it on-the-go from the YouTube app on any device.