VUDU might be one of the lesser popular video streaming services, but it's still used and loved by many loyal customers. Its Android app, however, wasn't that good. It was functional, we'll give it that, but it was slow, not quite responsive, and stuck in the Holo era of Android app design. That was version 1.5. Today, the app jumped to 4.1. Whoaaaaaaaaa.
So what we've got here is a complete revamp of the app, from the interface side and the backend side. VUDU is now faster, more responsive, and more efficient. It supports HD and HDX videos, has better search suggestions, a portrait mode on smartphones, and improved Chromecast casting. It also uses a new video format, which will be better in the long run, but will require you now to re-download all of your videos. That's definitely causing the app a few bad reviews on the Play Store from users who are confused as to why none of their videos are working.
As for the UI, it's all new with Material Design inspirations, from the navigation menu to the hamburger, new iconography, prettier colors, better use of space, and more. Here's the full changelog from VUDU's forum:
This sequel to the VUDU app is big. Like, Empire Strikes Back big. And it's even approved for one-handed use.
• Completely rebuilt and redesigned for a premium entertainment experience. We weren't kidding when we went up 3 versions.
• Faster, more responsive and more efficient. Choose two. Nah just kidding here. You get all three.
• New navigation menu, which you can find via the burger button. You can also filter and sort by date, genre, Tomatometer? is it just me or you hungry now?
• Auto-magic search suggestions to save you time. And find you some amazing gems. Did you know if you mis-type 'Hobbit' as 'Hobi', the first movie to come up is 'Hobo with a Shotgun'?? That movie is r-e-a-l.
• HD and HDX support (hallelujah!) for select newer, high end devices (Android Lollipop or higher required). So you not only want to upgrade your phone, you NEED to, right?
• Portrait mode for smartphones. We spent a lot of time creepily looking over the shoulders of people using smartphones to figure out how they hold and orient their phones, then used finger-tracking technology to heat-map accessible range of reach on various screen sizes and holding positions before presenting the case and design to the engineering team who then told us they already built it over weekend. Thanks guys.
***Got Dessert?***
You'll need to be on Android Jelly Bean, KitKat, Lollipop or Marshmallow to upgrade.
***Got Downloads?***
We're also using a slick new video format, so if you had any movies and TV shows downloaded to previous versions of the VUDU app, you;ll need to re-download after upgrading. Sorry for the hassle, but we promise it's worth it!
And for comparison's sake, here is what VUDU looked like before the update: