As you all have probably seen that YouTube got a major redesign to their old interface last week. According to many industry experts we are getting mixed responses about the new look. Most critics think that YouTube needed a new look for a long time and although the new YouTube improves a lot of features but there are some areas that still needs a lot of improvements. However I am not a harsh critic like most of those Gurus out there and I think Google has done a great job. The new looks really binds all the social networking sites to your YouTube experience. Here are the top 5 new features about the refreshed YouTube.

Personalized Bar

When I talk about the new YouTube the first that you probably noticed is the personalized bar on the left hand side of the screen that appears all black and stretches all the way down. This new Personal Bar is the central nerve system to your entire new YouTube experience.  It shows you links to your Facebook, Google+ Accounts as well as your top subscriptions. Once you click on any one of the links you can see related videos in the middle panel which I like to call as YouTube Video Feed. For Example: if you click on the tab of your Google+ profile then you will see all the YouTube Videos shared by your Google Plus Friends or members in your circle.

If you go a little down your personalized bar you can also view the latest rending and the most popular videos from several categories according to your interest. The personalized bar really does a great job in informing all you guys about the latest happenings from all your subscriptions. Previously we had to rely on Emails to know what was new and I often missed some of the videos from my favourite channels but now I definitely won’t.

New Channel  Layout

As you guys also noticed that YouTube now features all new channel layouts and designs. I think that the new designs could have been a lot better. Initially I liked it as it was refreshing from the old one but as I played around more I found out that the new designs are a bit confusing and the filmstrip like approach to all their design theme is not refined to suit a wider range of audience. Basically there are several formats that you can choose from  like Creator, Blogger, Network. If you want a combo of all the layouts then make sure you select everything.  A new addition to the YouTube Channel is that people can now see your YouTube feed that records your viewed videos, any comments and of course your uploads. Apart from that you can now Link your websites using the Custom Links feature. Links to Facebook and Twitter profiles are now a default feature for all publishers so I feel partners cannot show off their Channel Pages like before. In short your YouTube Channel  integrates more social elements in their new designs.

New Subscribe Button

YouTube finally has a dedicated subscribe button at the tip of any video pertaining to that particular channel. Previously people used all sorts of video annotations and other creative ways inside their videos to get more subscribers but finally YouTube made our task a hell lot easier by providing a subscribe button that is easy to spot. I am sure we all will gain subscribers a lot easier that before and I urge you all to use the new feature judiciously.

The new YouTube Analytics Layouts

Another major change that comes with the  refreshed YouTube is the new Analytics. It’s a lot more compact and allows you to analyze your statistics better. I created the Video below that explains you all the features of the new YouTube Analytics.

How to add others as Friends in the new YouTube Layout?

One thing you might have noticed is that the Add as Friend Button has disappeared with users using the new Channel Layout. In such a case I found a Video Explaining how to add others as friends in your YouTube Account. The Video below explains the steps that you need to take in order to add others as friends.

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