- YouTube recently added ambient mode to its full screen video player, which complements its new rounded video player design.
- Ambient mode works by illuminating a glow around the video window, similar to LED backlights for TVs, to create a more immersive experience for users.
- A recent update has made ambient mode more vibrant on Android devices, extending the glow below and above the video player, but it can be disabled in settings if not preferred.
And the worst part (to me):
if a video is not formatted to take up your entire screen, an ambient glow has been added to the black filler bars
Literally zero changes to YT over the last few years have been positive.
It is ugly as hell on AMOLED. Especially at night.
I don’t understand the hate for ambient mode. I’ve barely noticed it exists.
My main issue is that it’s a buggy mess. The bars will be different shades and get stuck. I have to close the app to fix it (or at least had to now that I know I can disable it)
Also, not really a big thing, but I bet it uses a little more battery than it otherwise would
I noticed immediately because I thought I had a giant smudge on my glasses. Super distracting and I always disable it.
Some people do, some people don’t. I do, and find it distracting because it’s not subtle enough.
Same, and when I have noticed it, I think it looks pretty nice at times. This is one of those cases of people just complaining for the sake of it.
If people want to complain about actual dumb UI changes; aim it at the new Discord mobile UI.
I added it myself with a plugin for using Youtube on my 21:9 monitor
Ooh, it can be disabled? Gotta get on that.
I thought my monitor was broken – the grey it tends to show looks like an LCD from a bad angle. If it were not for this Lemmy post then I’d never know it was a feature, not a bug.
It’s much easier to watch with it off (it’s really distracting). Settings icon (where you find video quality) -> Ambient Mode.
And I’m glad all over again that I set up a Piped server for watching YT.
Well I found glowing TVs distracting, so…