YouTube iOS battery drain bug fixed in latest update

In recent weeks, YouTube users on iOS began reporting an issue with the app that was causing it to drain their iPhone battery rapidly. Due to the rapid battery drain, these users reported that their device would get very warm to the touch, making it a frustrating issue all around. YouTube said earlier this month that it would investigate the matter, and now it is back with a fix.

The bug fix was released quietly today, bringing the iOS version of the app update to 12.45. The update, which is available on iTunes now, is dedicated specifically to the bug, with its change log stating: "Fixed an issue with battery usage."

No details about the nature of that issue, though, were provided, making it unclear what exactly was causing the battery drain. The fix up until this point had required users to uninstall the YouTube iOS app and instead watch YouTube videos through the Safari browser.

If you're one of those users, re-downloading the app will get you the newest version with the bug fix. Everyone else likely received the update automatically, but if you didn't, manually update to fix the bug. The issue doesn't appear to have affected the Android version of the app at all; that app was last updated on November 15 with minor UI tweaks.

SOURCE: iTunes