📼 NewTube

October 18, 2023

IN THIS ISSUE

📼 Major YouTube update

🆇 X brings in new fees

📱 Is Nothing getting distracted?

UP FIRST

YouTube rolls out major update for better viewing experience

The features are being rolled out globally 'over the coming weeks'

A year on from launching a new look and feel for YouTube, the video streaming giant is now rolling out three dozen new features and design updates for the platform.

Among the notable ones is the ability to speed up videos on mobile simply by pressing the display. Up to now, those with little time on their hands have to jump into the settings to speed up the video, but now you can double it by pressing and holding on the video as it plays, while letting go returns it to its original speed.

To make it easier to find particular moments in videos, YouTube is also adding bigger preview thumbnails that appear when you seek. Even better, if you change your mind while seeking and want to go back, you’ll feel a slight vibration on mobile so you'll know you’re at the precise point where you left off.

And yes, there’s plenty more, too ...

SOCIAL MEDIA

X is now charging non-verified users, but not everyone has to pay (yet)

Owner Elon Musk claims the fee is the most effective way to keep troublesome bots off the platform

X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, is to start charging some users a $1 annual subscription for the ability to perform certain actions such as posting, reposting, and replying.

The Elon Musk-owned platform announced the new program in a post on Tuesday, saying that new unverified users in New Zealand and the Philippines will be required to pay $1 a year. Existing accounts are not affected.

New users who choose not to subscribe will not be able to post and instead be limited to activities such as reading posts, watching videos, and following accounts.

X said the test has been introduced in an effort to reduce spam and bot activity, believing the system makes it more difficult for bot operators to set up multiple accounts as they'll each require a new payment card.

Tuesday’s move suggests that the $1 annual subscription could be rolled out globally before too long ...

OPINION by Andy Boxall

The most interesting Android phone brand is making me nervous

The launch of some unexpected product lines suggests the company may be getting distracted

Nothing, the technology company started by OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei, is making me nervous. After releasing several excellent mobile products since its inception in 2021 – and really impressing me with its unique vision in the process – there is evidence it’s getting distracted.

While Nothing does seem to be having fun, which is great, I’m concerned the unexpected diversification of the Nothing brand may lead to negative repercussions on the one thing I love about it most.

The Nothing Phone 2 is a brilliant smartphone, and its importance to the U.S. market, in particular, can’t be overstated. At its core, the Nothing Phone 2 is simply a good piece of mobile tech, but it’s also wrapped up in a body that stands out in the crowd and refreshingly goes in its own direction when it comes to the user interface and its design too ...

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