New YouTube App Channels Ill-Fated Nexus Q With Google TV Queue Control

Google has updated the YouTube app for Android, streamlining the process of discovering videos on your phone or tablet but then instantly watching them on your big-screen TV. The new app, a free download, works with Google TV set-top boxes, showing a TV symbol above each video which, when tapped, pushes the streaming playback over to the smart TV adapter.

That way, you can browse via the convenience of your mobile device, but get the best viewing experience at the same time. The system allows multiple phones and tablets to be hooked up simultaneously, making for a shared playlist type system.

Funnily enough, that's markedly similar to what Google's short-lived Nexus Q STB promised to do, making communal video playback more straightforward. Google positioned the oddly spherical Nexus Q as a home entertainment hub – not quite a Google TV box, but something attempting to be slightly different – but the gadget met with confusion and the search giant froze sales shortly after.

The new YouTube app, meanwhile, has the potential to do everything the Nexus Q did, but also drive Google TV sales. The software works as a YouTube remote, too, with play/pause, scroll, and skip.

You can download the new app here, though you'll obviously need a Google TV box in order to use the new remote queuing feature.