YouTube confirms your half-dark, half-light viewing experience is a test

Credit: Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority

TL;DR YouTube is testing a new design for the watch page.

The video player and comments section are designed to be in Ambient mode, while the recommended videos will appear in light or dark mode, depending on the user’s choice.

This experiment is being tested on both Android and iOS.

Recently, YouTube viewers have been noticing something weird with the mobile app. As we reported earlier today, the affected users are seeing half the screen appear in dark mode and the other half in light mode. While this was initially thought to be a bug, it turns out that the change is actually intentional.

A YouTube spokesperson has confirmed to Android Authority that it is currently running an experiment. This experiment is being used to test a new design for the watch page. In this experiment, the user will see the video player and comments section in Ambient mode. …