Impressions: SuperTube v1.2 Update

If you read our War of the 'Tubes feature from earlier this month, you're probably aware of the popular app SuperTube. Currently it's the only YouTube app for Windows Phone 7 that offers 720p as well as downloading of videos. But as I said in the YouTube feature, I wasn't completely impressed with SuperTube's execution of HD video or of its downloading abilities and the app was lacking in features compared to LazyWorm's YouTube app.

Now SuperTube seems to have answered most of my qualms with a new v1.2 update. Here's the full list of changes:

• Adjust the volume of the video player
• Nearby video: view the videos near your location 
• Add like, dislike button and comment
• Share on Facebook and Twitter
• Fix the issue of 720P

Once again, SuperTube is promising to match a lot of LazyWorm's and HTC's features and even add its own spin on things, but how does version 1.2 work out in reality? Check out my impressions after the break to find out.

The "adjust volume" feature is admittedly cool and convenient; the app has its own internal volume settings and while you're watching a video you can pitch the screen with your fingers inward/outward to reduce/increase the volume without having to find the volume rocker on your phone. "Nearby" is also quite the unique feature and does exactly what its description says; the app uses a Bing Map page and overlays it with small thumbnails of videos that have been uploaded near you. It's a little slow, but again this is a really neat feature and is genuinely distinctive.

Besides those, the update also went ahead and fixed some issues and beefed up its basic functionalities a bit. The new video page features a Like and Dislike button and if you pivot around you'll see videos now have a new comments page. You also finally have the ability to share videos via Facebook and Twitter, a feature that is really essential in order to compete.

However, despite claiming to have fixed "the issue of 720p" I still find that I cannot play any videos that are in both 720p and 1080p. For example, I was trying to watch the trailer for The Hangover: Part II in 720p and it refused to play, spitting back a 'video format error' and advising me to close Zune or check my network. Neither of those solutions worked so I'm still concerned that the app may need to be rewritten in order to better support HD video playback. On the flip side, the videos that did play in 720p they seemed to perform much better and there was generally less artifacting than in v1.1, so the HD feature isn't a complete loss.

If you want to check out SuperTube, it's worth the look and you may even find it perfect for your needs. With some improvements to the design and performance, I would feel that way too. Click on the tile below to see the app in the Marketplace.

SuperTube

Fast Code

$1.29 + Limited Trial

Version 1.2