Mike Wuerthele
The iOS YouTube app update issued on Monday rectifies the dramatic battery drain that manifested not only when the app was actively being used to watch videos, but when it was idle in the background as well.
The release notes for version 12.45 of the YouTube app are very short, claiming to only fix the battery drain issue. AppleInsider has confirmed that the app update does fix the severe drain issue — but reminds users that video watching can still be power-intensive.
YouTube declared that it would fix the problem on Nov. 13 after a bevy of user complaints. Other accounts of the problem noted devices heatingwhile using the app — but this wasn't universal.
Drain rates varied, though one person claimed that their iPhone X lost 20 percent of its battery in just 30 minutes.
Users could side-step the issue before the update by viewing the content within Safari. Users of the YouTube Kids app seemed to be unaffected by the problem.
The iPhone and iPad YouTube app is free, requires iOS 9.0 or newer, and is a 196MB download.
Christine McKee
Malcolm Owen
Charles Martin
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45 Comments
Why does YouTube need to run in the background? Since this is Google I have to wonder if they work bugs into their apps when new iPhones are released just so it looks like Apple has made a mistake so they can get high-end customers to consider Android-based devices.
And yet, when for example the iPhone 8/X were being reviewed, the "battery life" scores took a hit probably because of this- and of course it was all on Apple, not Google. What shitty, shoddy coding. I think Apple should surface notifications for apps that eat up so much battery life in the background, just like they do for location stuff.
Is there any reason for a dedicated YouTube app when the site can be viewed in any browser?