What’s new on YouTube

In the test version, the basic elements of interaction (like, dislike, share, add stitch and others) have been moved to the sidebar located to the right of the player. The title and description of the video, information about views and release date, the name of the channel and the subscription button moved here – in general, everything that was previously located directly under the video. And no one seems to like it.

If the author sells something, you can find links to products a little further down the same sidebar. And then there’s the comments section.

Where the description used to be, below the video player, YouTube’s new design now shows much more specific recommendations at much larger sizes than before.

Users who first encountered the update say that they are disturbed by the fact that the video you watch and the recommendations are positioned so close to each other that there is now almost no distinction.

New YouTube design / Photo: Brian Hamilton on Threads

Another profane user called the changes “one of the worst YouTube UI updates he’s ever seen.” He also posted a screenshot in which he expanded the video to the width of the page, so that the block of information moves downwards but remains on the right.

So far, reactions to the new design have been largely negative. Users have been vocal about their hatred for the new design, with some even stating that it makes YouTube look like some other video services and alludes to porn sites.

YouTube has confirmed that this is only a testing option for now. It is currently available to a very limited number of people. Given the feedback, it’s likely this design won’t make it across the finish line. Users can officially provide feedback on the redesign, so you can imagine the messages the developers have been receiving in recent days.