Technology1 min read

The new Apple TV has a YouTube problem

By · Via The Verge · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Customers setting up the new Apple TV 4K were met with immediate YouTube errors, including black screens claiming the service was unavailable and test banners indicating the build was not intended for production. Restoring normal playback generally requires customers to install system updates and reboot the hardware. In more stubborn cases, users like The Verge’s Tom Warren also had to delete and reinstall the app after applying the tvOS 27.2 update. Despite these software stumbles, the hardware itself earned positive reviews from critics who consider it a top-tier, albeit expensive, option.

Key points

  • Launch day software glitches disrupted access to YouTube for buyers of the new Apple TV 4…: Launch day software glitches disrupted access to YouTube for buyers of the new Apple TV 4K.
  • Affected owners must manually update software, restart devices, or reinstall the app to r…: Affected owners must manually update software, restart devices, or reinstall the app to restore standard video playback.
  • Reviewer John Higgins praised the hardware as one of the best streaming devices on the ma…: Reviewer John Higgins praised the hardware as one of the best streaming devices on the market despite its higher cost.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

People who received the brand new Apple TV 4k today saw some strange error messages as soon as they opened the YouTube app. As the first units arrived, the app was initially only showing a black screen with a QR code and an error message saying “YouTube is not yet available on this device.” In some cases the app was functional, but had a transparent red bar stuck at the bottom of the screen saying, “YouTube app is approved for device testing only and not for production use.”

The new Apple TV has a YouTube problem

A software update and a reboot should get YouTube working on your new Apple TV 4K.

A software update and a reboot should get YouTube working on your new Apple TV 4K.

Installing the new tvOS 27.2 update and rebooting wasn’t enough to resolve the issue for The Verge’s Tom Warren, he also had to uninstall and reinstall the app.

The Verge’s John Higgins said in his review of the new Apple TV 4K that it’s “one of the best streaming devices available,” but…

Technology