Pandora, a free and personalized radio, has released a newly redesigned version of its mobile apps for iOS and Android, which focuses more on personalization. The update is said to be rolled out these coming weeks. It adds a new thumbs-up icon, which was located at the top of the mobile app's now playing screen. Through tapping it, this will provide users the station's description together with the counters that show the different songs you have disliked and liked.
The newly designed screen acts as a fast way to review your all-time favorite songs or music from the station. This only shows that Pandora has got even better. With this, you can easily change your comments on the song by tapping thumbs down or thumbs up in the app. According to the chief technical officer of Pandora, Chris Martin, they are reminding their listeners that there's power in customizing the station. The Pandora app also comes with a new feature, which suggests personalized artists and genres at the top of the stations' list.
Based on the reports on The Verge, some parts of the modifications are subtle. The navigation control is still the same and when it comes to the icons, almost all are familiar. The color palette was also changed to deeper blues and brighter whites. The screen for now-playing uses blue gradient, which is quite similar to the Rdio's color. However, you might get annoyed with the banner ads. This was described as the ugliest part of the new design according to Yahoo. Banners pop up constantly as you use the ap. You may eliminate these banners through paying the monthly premium service of Pandora. Nevertheless, it would be great to see Pandora look for a less disturbing way of integrating banners in the app.
Once the update rolled out, Pandora will also unveil a new look for tablets. The Pandora's web version will be also updated.
