Photo: 9to5Google
Podcasts have become increasingly popular while driving for a reason that just makes sense: not everybody wants to listen to music while driving as simply hearing the news or playing a specific show is often more entertaining than the classic radio.
This is the reason podcasts app out there now have millions of downloads, and Google, too, wants a share of this market.
The search giant is therefore trying to polish the experience with its very own Google Podcasts on every single occasion. The latest update shipped as part of a new Google app beta build introduces additional refinements some might easily miss.
As others have noticed too, the now playing interface in the Google Podcasts app comes with a new layout supposed not only to make everything more convenient but also to put the focus on the playback controls. And for drivers running Google Podcasts on their Android devices, this is without a doubt good news.
So what’s changing?
First and foremost, the most obvious change is the lower part of the screen where Google has added more space between the available buttons, most likely to prevent accidental taps. Again, this is a refinement that really comes in handy to drivers, as they don’t need to look at the screen for too long to make sure they tap the right button.
The scrubber is now the first thing you see under the cover art, though the play and pause button remains the thing that’s easily visible in the new UI. Right now, however, it’s pretty clear Google is still experimenting with UI refinements, as the playback controls section is misaligned and not centered as the rest of the UI elements.
So technically, Google wants to further polish the experience with Google Podcasts, only that the company uses the testing builds released in the beta program to see how everything would be working. For now, you can just try out these changes with Google app beta build 11.42.
The search giant is therefore trying to polish the experience with its very own Google Podcasts on every single occasion. The latest update shipped as part of a new Google app beta build introduces additional refinements some might easily miss.
As others have noticed too, the now playing interface in the Google Podcasts app comes with a new layout supposed not only to make everything more convenient but also to put the focus on the playback controls. And for drivers running Google Podcasts on their Android devices, this is without a doubt good news.
So what’s changing?
First and foremost, the most obvious change is the lower part of the screen where Google has added more space between the available buttons, most likely to prevent accidental taps. Again, this is a refinement that really comes in handy to drivers, as they don’t need to look at the screen for too long to make sure they tap the right button.
The scrubber is now the first thing you see under the cover art, though the play and pause button remains the thing that’s easily visible in the new UI. Right now, however, it’s pretty clear Google is still experimenting with UI refinements, as the playback controls section is misaligned and not centered as the rest of the UI elements.
So technically, Google wants to further polish the experience with Google Podcasts, only that the company uses the testing builds released in the beta program to see how everything would be working. For now, you can just try out these changes with Google app beta build 11.42.
Google News