YouTube is testing the ‘Play something’ FAB button for Android users

To assist users in escaping endless scrolling, YouTube is testing a new floating “Play something” button for Android users. When tapped, the button plays a video and floats above the app’s bottom bar. No matter the format, the button uses the YouTube Shorts player, which is orientated in portrait mode. For more than a year, the feature has been in testing; alternate iterations have included a banner and a button with the YouTube logo in black and white.

9to5Google was the first to notice a new floating “Play something” button in the YouTube app for Android, which is being tested to stop endless scrolling. The floating action button (FAB) features a play icon and reads “Play something,” according to the report. The black background with white lettering makes it really stand out.

It selects a YouTube video to play for you when you hit the button, which hovers just above the bottom bar of the app.

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Regardless of the format, the button displays videos using the YouTube Shorts player, which is orientated in portrait mode.

The Shorts player launches a video when you tap. With a timeline scrubber at the bottom and big buttons for liking, disliking, commenting, and sharing at the right, this feature isn’t limited to YouTube Shorts; it will also play regular videos in that same format.

Since last year, YouTube has been testing a feature called Play something FAB; the most recent report was from version 19.50 for Android. By letting consumers choose what they want to see and taking into account their tastes, this feature makes the content engaging and thematically appropriate.

The function is the same as Netflix’s previously removed “Surprise Me,” a comparable random video selection that debuted in 2021 under the name “Play Something.”

Although Google and YouTube have not commented on the subject, it is said that they take user preferences into account before recommending new full-length or short movies.