Microsoft has quietly shipped a user interface update for the Xbox Video app that’s currently available to Windows 8.1 users.
Although we can’t find much in the way of new features just yet, the update, which can be trigged by heading into the Windows Store app and selecting ‘app updates’, features a fully revamped user interface. Gone is the gray monotone that had dominated both Xbox Video and Xbox Music in Windows 8. There’s also an expansion of the Metacritic ratings system for television shows and movies that may or may not have been there in the previous update.
One thing is for sure, this update to Xbox Video also includes less of the horizontal scrolling paradigm that made the application such a pain to use on laptops, desktops and tablets alike. This version of Xbox Video is also a lot clearer about the content that is being stored on the user’s computer and what’s being streamed, so that users don’t happen to get on a plane and find that they’re shows aren’t actually being stored locally. This update does expand on the video recommendations system that was first showcased on the Xbox 360’s last two dashboard updates.
We’ll continue to monitor the application for updates we didn’t catch on our first past through.
