YouTube is exploring a new floating “Play Something” button in its Android app, as reported by 9to5Google. Positioned just above the app’s bottom bar, the button is designed to select and play a video for users with a single tap.
This feature leverages YouTube’s Shorts player to display videos, whether they are vertically formatted Shorts or standard YouTube content. However, this approach has drawn some attention, as Shorts’ portrait orientation might not be ideal for traditional YouTube videos. It remains to be seen if YouTube will refine this aspect before a broader rollout.
YouTube has been experimenting with similar features for over a year, including a “Play Something” banner and a black-and-white YouTube logo button. If the name sounds familiar, it might remind users of Netflix’s retired random video picker, “Surprise Me” (originally launched as “Play Something” in 2021).
The latest test underscores YouTube’s efforts to enhance user discovery and engagement by offering effortless ways to explore content, but whether this feature will make it to a full release remains uncertain.
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