While widgets were introduced in iOS 14 and iPadOS 15, apps like YouTube have been slow to implement them, but a recent update finally fixed that.
Google released an update that enables two widgets: one that lets you open the search bar on YouTube, and another that lets you go directly to your subscribed channels and more.
The Biggest Widget is something I've wanted to see on YouTube ever since widgets came to iOS in 2020, especially since it's an app I use daily on my iPhone and even more so on iPad.
Thanks to this update, the ability to access my lunchtime content is now faster and easier to reach.
reduce presses
I subscribe to a bunch of YouTube channels, whether it's a channel about a certain series (opens in a new tab) or a compilation channel (opens in a new tab) to watch while I eat my lunch. Still, I still had to find the YouTube app on my home screen, go to my subscriptions, and then watch the video.
I've always thought of widgets as shortcuts, as a way to more easily access parts of an app with two clicks or less, and I always thought YouTube was perfect for that. However, Google has always been slower than others to keep up with new iOS features; after all, it has its own mobile operating system to update and maintain.
However, when the company releases updates based on new features, it usually hits the nail on the head, like the lock screen widgets it released back in September.
The same applies here: having placed the largest widget on the home screen of my iPhone and iPad makes the lunchtime tradition much easier now: the only thing I'd like to see now is a widget to do the same, but as the saying (almost) goes, good gadgets come to those who wait.