Youtube Safari Problem on Mac

[emirsinan]

I use Macbook Pro 16’ (2019). When I try to watch something from Youtube, the video freezes but the audio continues or vice versa. This happens few times a day. The more time I spend on Youtube, more frequently I face this problem. The laptop also heats up and “kernel task” shows up in Activity Monitor and gradually uses more and more cpu. This happened regardless of the Mac Os I used( Catalina and Big Sur) The laptop is 9 months old and this issue started 1 or 2 months ago. What could be the problem?

 

[Rod]

Was the device new or second hand when you bought it?
Safari does have some recognised problems with YouTube especially at high resolution I would be inclined to use a different browser.
kernel task in Activity Monitor is normal but the percentage of CPU use is the question. What percentage of CPU does it use? What is the computer doing when you see this?

 

[emirsinan]

My laptop is new. I don’t remember kernel task cpu usage but it is always the highest cpu user in Activity Monitor. It is not unbelieveably high but I would say it is around 10-60 percent. Laptop gets hot and Youtube tab starts to glitch, stutter or freeze. And this issue is specific to Youtube. I have 16 gb of ram and when this problem occurs I see safari (just one tab) using 12-15 gb of ram which I think is unusual.

 

[chscag]

Try using another browser for watching YouTube. I use Chrome when watching a YouTube video and experience no overheating or other problems. Of course I'm using an iMac which has better cooling than your 16" MacBook Pro.

Is your 16" MacBook Pro equipped with an i9? If it is, this is common for the i9, they natively run hot especially when viewing or playing videos.

Also, keep your eye on the Activity Monitor to see what else is running and using the CPU at the same time Safari is displaying YouTube.

 

[Rod]

I knew I had seen something about YouTube high res video on Safari being an issue, here is one such article, https://www.macxdvd.com/youtube-dow...play-youtube-4k-60fps-video-problem-fixed.htm
Not promoting their software but it illustrates the problem.

 

[chscag]

@Rod:

That's an old article, last updated December 2018. You need to check to see if there is anything more current about Safari not playing 4K high res video and post that instead.

 

[Rod]

Yes well I'm on my iPhone at the moment but there are a lot of similar articles and no indication the problem has been resolved. None the less your suggestion of using a different browser eg Chrome or Firefox is a good one. It's just one of the reasons I don't use Safari. It always seems to be one step behind current technology especially with visual media.