You can now scroll down on fullscreen YouTube videos to read descriptions, comments, more

Abner Li | Nov 16 2018 - 11:37 am PT

While many people today watch videos on mobile phones and tablets, the web is still an exceedingly important screen. YouTube is improving the fullscreen web player with the ability to scroll down to see recommendations, descriptions, and more.

Tapping the fullscreen button in the bottom-right corner of a YouTube video still opens the same player that hides your browser’s interface, including the address bar and tabs in Chrome. Initially, YouTube elements like the app bar featuring the logo, search field, and account avatar were also obscured.

However, the bottom of the screen now features a “Scroll for details” arrow. Located underneath the playback timeline, scrolling will reveal elements usually located underneath a video or to the side, in the case of “Up next” and other watch suggestions.

As users scroll, the YouTube app bar will return to allow users to search for other content. There is a UI-sizing mismatch, however, as buttons in the player window continue to be large-sized, while other elements appear like normal.

The YouTube video will keep playing as users read and reply to comments, or expand descriptions. Meanwhile, if you click to another video in this mode, it will automatically play as a fullscreen window. The ability to scroll is only available on youtube.com and not other embedded videos.

This useful change is widely rolling out now and helps YouTube on the web to feel like a fullscreen application with a contained experience. It is also helpful when Casting a tab to larger screens, like a television.