YouTube TV app can now use your phone as a second screen, boosting the app’s experience for consumers who watch videos on their TVs. Without question, watching YouTube on TV is entertaining because you get to consume content on a large screen, but it does have some limitations.
You can’t like, subscribe to, or share a video via the YouTube TV app. This is due to the inability to use and navigate the remote controls. In addition, most TVs lack a built-in web browser to enable these features. Google is releasing a new feature that allows you to link your TV to your smartphone for improved usage to address this problem.
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Users can link their TV to their iOS or Android tablet to sync videos across the two devices using this new feature. According to YouTube, this makes it easier for consumers to interact with other YouTube features such as comments, the like button, and creator support, among other things.
According to the company, over 80% of customers claim to use another digital device while watching TV, influencing their purchase decision. It then looked at how people used its own YouTube mobile app and discovered that many of them would open the video while watching YouTube on their TV and participate with the content on their device by liking, subscribing, and other means.
YouTube stated that it recognized an opportunity to capitalize on this user behaviour to overcome its difficulties in building a big-screen experience. Given that remote controllers are difficult to operate with, most TVs don’t have built-in web browsers, and there’s sometimes no internet connection, its designers have strived to make the TV app easier to use over the years.
You must sign in with the same YouTube account on your phone and TV to use this feature. If you’re signed in, open the YouTube app on your TV, then go to your phone’s YouTube app and tap “Connect” on the prompt that appears.
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You can use your phone’s keypad to search for videos to watch on your TV, or you can use your phone to leave a remark on a video you’re watching on TV, or check the description of a movie you’re watching on TV.
This new feature is similar to the Casting feature, which you may have used to cast a video from your phone to your television. Google is now simply providing the same usability for videos as the YouTube app on your TV. This feature will begin to go out today, but it may take some time to reach your smartphone or television.