14 DAY TRIAL // Mountain View, California-based search giant Google has confirmed to an American newspaper that iPhone 5 owners would soon be able to watch their favorite clips full-screen.
An upcoming update to the native YouTube app for iOS devices is on its way, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The newspaper reportedly had a chat with the development team behind the iOS implementation of YouTube, and is now able to confirm that “an updated version of the iPhone and iPod Touch app is on its way and will be optimized for the larger screen size.”
Both the iPhone 5 and the fifth-generation iPod touch boast a four-inch (diagonal) Retina screen that displays more content than previous 3.5-inch screens found in older-generation iPhones and iPod touch players.
Currently, the iPhone version of Google’s YouTube app leaves two dark stripes on the left and right sides of the display when set to full-screen mode (as shown above).
“Watch the world’s videos and keep up with your favorite YouTube channels with the official YouTube app for iOS. Sign in to access your subscriptions, playlists, uploads and more,” reads Google’s description.
This YouTube app replaces the original application previously found in iOS. With iOS 6, Apple removed Google’s video-on-demand service, forcing customers to download a standalone app from iTunes.
The key features touted by Google can be found below. One of the features Google doesn’t mention is the ad-supported model on which the app is built.
✓ Enjoy YouTube’s vast video catalog, including official music videos ✓ Find videos and channels more easily with voice search and query autocomplete ✓ Subscribe to channels and instantly access your subscriptions with the channel guide UI ✓ Read comments, browse related videos, enable subtitles and more – all while watching ✓ Easy video sharing to Google+, E-mail, Facebook and Twitter
YouTube is currently compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation), iPod touch (5th generation) and iPad. It requires iOS 4.3 or later.