AOL.com relaunches website, emphasizes video and local stories

By Jeffrey Van Camp Published November 2, 2010

15 million people visit AOL.com every month, but probably not you. AOL hopes to change its former dial-up homepage image with a revamped website focusing on streaming video and quick, relevant stories for every-day browsers. The new AOL.com is supposed to have something for everyone and every interest. Lists of new features are below.

aol-new-design-website-2010 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

New video features:

“You’ve got” – Remember “You’ve got mail,” that slogan that used to dominate the Internet? AOL isn’t ready to give up on it just yet. “You’ve got” is a video series where the person featured finishes the slogan. For example: President Obama is featured today, saying “You’ve got…a chance to change your community and your country.”
AOL Daybreak – a morning news roundup with Lindsay Campbell
The ONE – a two-minute daily video focusing on a story that has gone viral
The Light Box – a flash player that expands over the page, dimming everything around it (somewhat laggy and cumbersome)

New written features:

The Daily Buzz
Editors Picks
Wow! Deal of the Day – AOL purchased Wow in October.
Cause Marketing
Day-part programming – AOL will post different kinds of stories in the morning, daytime, and evening. Morning programming will focus on pop culture updates and functional news; daytime programming will be full of “snackable” entertainment, fashion trends, and life tips; and evening programming will wrap up the days news and feature daily themed stories like “Tech Wednesdays.”

Recommended Videos

What do you think? Will the new AOL homepage be enough to help it compete with Yahoo and other entertainment sites? It would be nice to see the site integrate local Patch.com (a local website network it bought) results more prominently. 15 million views is a lot, but not when compared to the 500 million Yahoo gets on its network of websites.

Jeffrey Van Camp

Former Deputy Editor

As DT's Deputy Editor, Jeff helps oversee editorial operations at Digital Trends. Previously, he ran the site's…

Topics

Computing

Google’s Gemini 4 Carbon is built for complex coding and cybersecurity tasks

Gemini 4 Carbon currently ranks first on Artificial Analysis' updated Intelligence Index.

google-gemini-4-carbon

Google just dropped its latest AI model, Gemini 4 Carbon, designed to tackle complex coding jobs and cybersecurity threats. The company claims it can work through difficult engineering problems for days, finding hidden bugs and developing fixes across large codebases.

Gemini 4 Carbon also takes the top spot on Artificial Analysis' updated Intelligence Index, scoring 59 points, pushing out Claude Opus 5.5, OpenAI's GPT-6 Astra, and even its own predecessor Gemini 4 Argon.

Computing

A top-shelf MacBook Pro PROLED XDR can be yours for just under $15,000

For a mere $14,549, you can get yourself the fully kitted 16-inch MacBook Pro PROLED XDR with the beefiest laptop chip that Apple has to offer

MacBook Pro PROLED XDR laptop

Apple has just introduced a redesigned MacBook Pro with a few bells and whistles. The focus this time around is on a thinner and lighter build, and an upgrade to a touch-sensitive OLED screen without any ugly notch. And, in case you were wondering, there is definitely a price premium to pay for these niceties, which also include a glowing Apple logo at the back. What if you wanted to get the best that Apple has to offer? Well, the numbers are finally here.

For a mere $14,549, you can get yourself the fully kitted 16-inch MacBook Pro PROLED XDR with the beefiest laptop chip that Apple has to offer, and the best memory configuration in tow. For nearly $15,000, you treat yourself to the 16-inch version of the laptop with a nano-texture glass layer on the screen to reduce reflections and glare.

Computing

What’s actually new and different on the MacBook Pro PROLED XDR? Here’s everything you need to know

Touchscreen vs. non-touchscreen MacBook Pro differences

Apple has unveiled its first-ever touchscreen MacBook Pro. The company seems a bit confused about the naming, calling it the "MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display," which is tough to remember. If you look past that and review the full spec sheets, you might ask a genuine question: what are the differences between the touchscreen and non-touchscreen versions?

Given that Apple continues to sell both variants together, that's a genuine question. Luckily, you don't have to spend more time lining up the spec sheets side by side and hunting for differences hidden in the fine print. I took that bullet for you. Here's everything that's different between the PROLED XDR Display and the regular MacBook Pro.