YouTube Shorts has rapidly gained popularity and is now a major source of entertainment, achieving an impressive milestone of 200 billion average daily views. While YouTube Shorts draws inspiration from platforms like Instagram Reels and TikTok, it has introduced a new feature allowing users to rotate videos. Traditionally, short video formats such as YouTube Shorts were primarily viewed in a vertical orientation, but a recent report indicates this has changed. According to a discovery by Android Authority, a new setting has been introduced that permits users to watch YouTube Shorts in landscape mode.

This feature can be found in the YouTube app’s accessibility settings on devices like the Pixel 9 Pro XL. Users will see an option labeled “Rotate Shorts” accompanied by a toggle. When this setting is enabled, the Shorts will be displayed in landscape mode instead of the typical vertical format. However, the practicality of landscape mode for YouTube Shorts raises some questions.

In this orientation, a large portion of the screen—almost 70%—will remain unused, leaving gray bars visible. This leads to the question of necessity: why would YouTube implement such a feature? It appears that this option is primarily aimed at enhancing accessibility for individuals who might face difficulties with their devices. One potential benefit of the landscape feature is for users with motor disabilities who are unable to frequently rotate their phones.

Moreover, it could also aid those who keep their phones mounted and prefer not to reach for them to change their orientation. Notably, enabling the “Rotate Shorts” toggle will override the automatic screen rotation setting on the device. For those interested in experimenting with this new feature, it’s advisable to update the YouTube app to the latest version. However, availability may vary as YouTube could be rolling out this function in stages, and it is active on version 20.26.31 and above.