May 2nd tech news roundup: YouTube’s picture-in-picture mode is now free for everyone, Valve’s Steam Controller launched, Apple’s Mac Mini is now more expensive

YouTube makes picture-in-picture mode free for all mobile users

YouTube’s picture-in-picture mode debuted in 2018 on Android, and arrived on iOS in 2021. The feature allows users to continue watching videos in a small window, when they switch out of the YouTube app, i.e. by swiping up or by tapping the home button. This mini player has buttons to play/pause the video, fast-forward and rewind by 10 seconds, a button to close the window, and an option to bring the YouTube app back into view.

The video player can be moved anywhere on the screen, which can be useful if you’re multitasking, or texting someone.

The only problem with PiP mode was that it was only available for users in the U.S., and it wasn’t free. Users needed a premium subscription to access the feature. That changed this week, as YouTube announced that picture-in-picture is rolling out to all users worldwide. The best part is that it is free for everyone, you do not need a premium subscription. However, there is one restriction. Free users, and those with YouTube Premium Lite can only watch non-music videos in PiP mode. Users with a YouTube Premium subscription will be able to play music and non-music videos in picture-in-picture mode.

Valve reveals the Steam Controller’s price

It has been over 5 months since Valve unveiled the Steam Controller, Steam Machine and Steam Frame. But, the launch of the devices were delayed to the rising costs of RAM, Memory, tariff, import duties, etc. There is some good news at last. Valve has finally announced the price of the Steam Controller. It has been priced at $99 in the US, $149 CAD in Candad, €99 in Europe, £85 in the UK, $149 AUD in Australia.

The gamepad will be available from May 4th 2026 on Steam in the US, Canada, UK, EU, Australia, and via third-party resellers in Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

While the availability of the Steam Controller is certainly welcome news, there is still no word about the pricing of the Steam Machine and Steam Frame. Valve says it is still waiting to release the Steam Machine, but that the current RAM and memory shortages are making it difficult for everyone.

Apple discontinues Mac Mini 256GB, hence making the desktop more expensive

Apple has quietly discontinued the Mac Mini 256GB model. According to MacRumors, this change is a global one. Unfortunately this also means that the desktop computer is more expensive. The 256GB Mac Mini with an M4 chip and 16GB of RAM used to be available for $599, which was reasonably affordable.

But, by halting the sales of this model, Apple has inadvertently increased the price of the Mac Mini. The starter model now is the 512GB variant, which costs an extra two hundred bucks, i.e. it has a $799 price tag. There’s no doubt why this happened, rising taxes and tariffs, and the RAM/Memory shortages. If you want a Mac desktop,  it might be cheaper to get a MacBook Neo for $599, and use an external monitor with it.

Google now shows how many reviews were deleted by businesses

When you run a Google search to look up a business, e.g. a restaurant, store or hotel, one of the most useful features in the results are reviews that were written by users. These reviews often help others to make a decision whether to visit the store, or purchase something. Not all feedback is positive, sometimes customers may leave a bad review to highlight how a business treated them as a customer. But this can be abused, sometimes irate customers may leave a negative review on purpose, which could harm a business. Regardless, the user reviews section has always been a useful tool.

Some companies abuse the system by filing a lawsuit, to forcibly remove negative reviews from Google. While that is unpleasant, other users may not know what had happened, it’s not a transparent process. For example, one business had removed 250 reviews for defamation. You wouldn’t see negative feedback, just the positive ones. Google wants to change this, and has now begun displaying how many reviews were deleted by a business. This may help users judge how a business treats its customers, if you see a large number of deleted reviews, you may want to investigate it further.

Brave browser’s Shred button is now available on Android

Brave browser has announced that it has added a new feature in its Android app, the Shred button. As the name suggests, this option deletes data related to a site. This is important, because such data could be used to track users across visits.

Shred isn’t completely new, it was first introduced in Brave for iOS in 2024, before its arrival on Android. To use the feature on your phone, tap on the Brave button while on a website, expand, and select “Shred site’s data”. It can also be accessed from the browser’s main menu, or the tab switcher. The feature works on a per-site-basis.

Users can choose to enable an option to Auto Shred site data automatically when closing tabs, or when they close the app. This feature replaces the “forget me when I close this site” on Android. Brave says that this privacy-friendly feature not only prevents tracking, but also helps users with sites that limit access to articles behind a subscription.

Microsoft is testing an improved Run dialog with dark mode

Microsoft seems to be focusing on improving the Windows 11 experience, and this time it is testing a redesigned Run dialog. The app, which you can trigger with the Win + R keyboard shortcut, is getting the Fluent Design. The developers behind the redesign are the folks who work on the Windows Terminal and PowerToys utilities. According to the announcement, the performance of the Run command has been improved, it opens in about 94ms. Users can type ~\to jump to the user directory, and continue to navigate from there. And the Run box will support dark mode.

The improvements for Run are currently available for testers who have opted into the Windows Insider Experimental Channel.