YouTube TV for iOS Enables Picture-in-Picture for American Users

Grace Edwards 04 Apr 2022

YouTube TV has become a very decent replacement for the traditional cable of air TV, but there was one thing missing that traditional TV has embraced long ago: picture-in-picture. Now, YouTube finally introduces this long-awaited mode for its American users. With pic-in-pic introduced, you’ll be able to watch YouTube TV along with any other activity on your iPhone or iPad.

It takes just a regular update to see the feature work on your device, regardless of your plan. All you need is the latest version of iOS or iPadOS (so far, it’s 15.4.1, but any no earlier than 15.0 will do) and the latest version of the YouTube app as well. To return to your home screen, you need to just swipe up from the bottom of the screen. After that, you can run any other app, like social media, books, office apps, or whatever, while the smaller screen shows the channel you’re watching.

Does it make sense on devices that are incomparably smaller than TV screen? Yes, it does. First, you can cast the picture from your iPhone or iPad to your TV, with or without Apple TV device. Second, picture-in-picture makes sense when you’re waiting for a certain show on air while doing something else. So, you don’t have to stare at the smaller picture: when you see the show begin, you just switch to YouTube TV by tapping it and watch it in full screen mode.

The Android version of the YouTube TV app has had this feature for years, but it turned out harder to Implement it on iOS. On one hand, it’s logical, given that Android, as well as YouTube, is owned by Google. On another, iOS devices are much more unified, so developers have to adjust their products to a smaller variety. 

Have you already tried the new feature on your iPhone/iPad? Does it work properly? Does its implementation keep up to that on Android? Share what you think in the comments if you please! And keep watching your YouTube TV while typing it.