YouTube TV for Android gets resizable PiP-style miniplayer

Abner Li | Dec 1 2024 - 5:15 pm PT

Following the main YouTube app, YouTube TV for Android phones and tablets has a new miniplayer styled after picture-in-picture.

Previously, the miniplayer docked to the bottom bar. The program name was overlaid with a progress bar. You’d see a very wide crop of what was playing with play/pause at the right and a tap or swipe bringing back the fullscreen interface. It was similar to the old experience in the YouTube app and the current YT Music controls.

YouTube TV’s miniplayer is now an in-app picture-in-picture window. Play/pause is flanked by 15-second rewind/skip and close is in the corner. Tap the center button to expand.

Like in the main app, you can pinch-to-zoom and have the player span the full-width of your screen. This is much more usable than the sliver you previously got. By default, the window is still quite small.

We’re seeing this new miniplayer rolled out with version 8.47.0 of YouTube TV for Android. This is an unsurprising addition that helps unify the experience between the YouTube apps. It makes the miniplayer in YouTube TV actually nice to use if you need to browse the app while watching.