Google introduces a new design language for Android TV & Google TV apps

11 May 2023 | Rasmus Larsen |

At I/O 2023, Google introduced a new design language for TV apps together with a new toolkit to make it easier for developers to design and create TV apps. While we did not get upgraded Chromecast hardware or big Google TV news at I/O 2023, Google did announce its vision for the future of TV apps, specifically how apps should look and feel. Similar to Google's 'Material You' design language for Android mobile devices, the new design language for Android TV and Google TV apps centers on rounded 'cards' and content grids which are easy to navigate. It is the "modern Material 3 look", says Google, and it covers typography, color, navigation, layout, and more. It makes apps look a lot like the Google TV homescreen.

The new default look for apps

Developers are free to design their app user interface as they please but the new design guidelines can be thought of as the new default look for Android TV and Google TV apps. Along with the new design guidelines, a Compose for TV tool was released in Alpha version. Developers can use it as the user interface framework for developing "beautiful and functional" TV apps in line with the new design language, said Paul Lammertsma, Developer Relations Engineer at Google. The tool uses Jetpack Compose to create apps with less code and apps that are easier to maintain. Developers are already saying that the new framework helps streamline development. - "Thanks to Compose for TV, we are able to reuse components and move much faster than the old Leanback View APIs would have ever allowed us to," said Danny Preussler, Android Platform Lead at Soundcloud. Here are some examples of what it looks like: