YouTube Getting New Look, Video Player Improvements and Pinch to Zoom on iOS
YouTube today announced a number of updates that are designed to improve the look and performance of the popular video player on desktop and on mobile devices.
An "ambient mode" changes the background color of the app in a subtle way to match the video that is playing, an effect that YouTube says is meant to draw viewers into the content. Ambient mode will be available on the web and on mobile when the dark theme is enabled.
The dark theme has also been updated to be even darker than before, a change made due to user feedback.
As for the video player, YouTube links in video descriptions will turn into buttons, and actions like share and download have been updated to minimize distractions. The subscribe button has an updated shape and color, with YouTube doing away with the red shade.
On iOS and Android devices, a pinch to zoom feature that's been in testing is rolling out as of today. Users can zoom in and out of a video, and when the zoom in function is used, the rest of the video stays zoomed until the user zooms back out.
Precise seeking has also been implemented to make it easier to rewind to a specific spot in a video. Users can drag or swipe when looking through a video to see a row of thumbnails that will help them find the exact part of the video they're looking for.
YouTube says that all of these changes will begin rolling out gradually over the course of the next few weeks.
Popular Stories
Apple turns 50 this year, and its CEO Tim Cook has promised to celebrate the milestone. The big day falls on April 1, 2026.
"I've been unusually reflective lately about Apple because we have been working on what do we do to mark this moment," Cook told employees today, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "When you really stop and pause and think about the last 50 years, it makes your heart ...
While the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate is now available ahead of a public release, the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April.
Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far.
iOS 26.3
iPhone to Android Transfer Tool
iOS 26.3 makes it easier...
Apple recently acquired Israeli startup Q.ai for close to $2 billion, according to Financial Times sources. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone maker Beats in 2014.
This is also the largest known Apple acquisition since the company purchased Intel's smartphone modem business and patents for $1 billion in 2019....
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld.
The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld.
Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do.
The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up.
Upgraded Architecture
The next-generation...
