In the past few weeks, several YouTube users reported massive battery drain, some to the point of heating up. This allegedly occurred even as the app remained idle in the background. Thus, to mitigate the recent YouTube battery drain issue, Google pushed out updates for the app.
Google confirms rolling out the fix for the YouTube battery drain issue on iOS
As these tended to vary, reports failed to make compelling documentations on the number of affected iOS and YouTube users. This also includes discussions on the extent of the issue itself. Many expressed their concerns on Twitter and Reddit in the process. One user claims a 10-percent battery loss after watching a 15-minute video. On the other hand, another report reveals battery life declining by 20 percent in over 30 minutes.
Affected users reported running YouTube on versions 12.42 and 12.43. While some put the blame on iOS 11, reports on the issue did not always reflect the latest iOS version. In addition, Apple’s latest flagship iPhone X remained unaffected, except on instances when YouTube ran in the said app versions. This led many to conclude the app version directly affecting drastic battery life drops.
Earlier in November, YouTube promised exasperated users that the fix was currently being developed. Many expressed severe frustration, as watching videos remains one of the most perfunctory use cases for mobile devices.
To date, Google has not issued a statement on what may have caused the YouTube battery drain issue. Rolled out on November 14th through version 12.44, the company only confirmed the fix in the version 12.45 app release notes.
