Google+ updates UI on Android, adds Stories and Movies feature

Google has a lot of apps for lots of different platforms, so it may not be surprising that updates take more than one week a month. Even though several apps were updated last week, Google has continued this week with the release of an updated Google+ app for Android devices. Probably the biggest feature added to the new version is the new auto awesome Stories and Movies features that was announced earlier this week. Probably the biggest change users will notice though is a refreshed user interface.
The interface has been overhauled with a new (Google+) red background for the top menu band. The left pullout menu now highlights a user’s circles much more prominently while related apps/features like Photos or Location have been pushed to a menu bar on the bottom of the screen.
Google+ VP of Engineering Dave Besbris describes nine new features in the new version of the Google+ app:

1. Auto Awesome Stories now combine your photos, videos and the places you visit into beautiful travelogues. You can read more at http://goo.gl/JGgzil.
2. Auto Awesome Movies are now available on Android, iOS and the web, so lots more people will receive highlight reels of their photos and videos. Here’s one example: http://goo.gl/9ljcdj.
3. You can now create animated GIFs and photobooth-style images on demand. Just tap the new plus button in Photos, and select either Motion or Mix.
4. Really big photo libraries are now supported on Android, so you can access your many thousands of photos quickly and easily.
5. You can now browse your entire photo library, as well as your highlights, by date. Just drag the new scroll bar to move forwards or backwards in time.
6. Profiles now display total content views on both Android and the web. (You can choose to show or hide this number via settings.)
7. A new navigation menu makes it easier to switch between your favorite circles and communities, as well as other places in the app.
8. It’s a lot easier to share content from your phone or tablet. To give it a try, just tap the new pencil icon at the bottom right of the stream.
9. The app menu now slides away as you move down the stream, letting posts fill the entire screen.

As usual, the update is rolling out in waves, so you may have to wait for it to be made available to your account. You can check for the new version using the download links to Google Play below. If you just can’t wait though, you can access the APK courtesy XDA and sideload Google+.