Google has released a native YouTube app for Apple Vision Pro, ending a notable gap in the headset’s app library. When Apple Vision Pro launched in early 2024, several major platforms stayed absent. However, YouTube’s arrival now gives owners access to a massive catalog of immersive video. According to a hands-on review, the app mirrors the iPad version in layout and controls, while adding spatial features built for Apple’s mixed-reality environment.
The app includes floating menus and redesigned playback controls that feel natural in a 3D space. More importantly, it introduces a dedicated “spatial” tab. This section highlights VR180 and 3D 360-degree videos that take advantage of the headset’s immersive display.
Spatial Video Shines, But With Limits
The biggest strength of the YouTube app lies in user-uploaded immersive content. Viewers can explore a huge library of VR clips that previously required workarounds. However, not everything looks perfect. Even high-resolution 8K VR180 videos appear fuzzy at times. Reviewers suggest heavy compression and rendering limits reduce clarity.
Apple’s own immersive videos still look sharper and more detailed. Content inside Apple TV and the Spatial Gallery delivers a cleaner experience. Still, YouTube’s scale gives users more variety, which many consider a fair trade-off.
Some features remain unfinished. For example, the Shorts tab appears but does not load content. Observers suspect a software bug rather than a design decision. Meanwhile, competing apps like TikTok already run fully native experiences, which raises expectations for future updates.
Regular Videos Work Better Elsewhere
Although spatial clips benefit from the native app, standard 2D videos feel restricted. The app lacks a full theater-style display mode. That means users cannot stretch videos across the giant virtual screens available in Safari. As a result, many viewers still prefer watching traditional content through Apple’s browser or third-party players.
Despite these drawbacks, the app’s existence marks progress. Apple Vision Pro owners now have direct YouTube access without hacks or web shortcuts. Reviewers view the release as a positive step, even if the experience feels basic.
Looking ahead, users hope Google expands features and fixes missing tools. The launch proves major platforms are slowly embracing Apple’s headset. For Vision Pro fans, that momentum matters as much as the app itself.
