Pip (short for Picture-in-Picture mode) allows users to pin a small window showing a video that floats on top of other windows. For example, you can watch ‘The Office TV’ while lurking on Reddit. Unfortunately, while macOS Sierra supports picture-in-picture mode, it doesn’t work on every site. But you can use third-party apps to enforce PiP on Safari and Chrome. Here’s how.
1. Watch Videos in Picture in Picture Mode on Safari
First things first, we need to install the extension PIPifier for Safari. This extension gives you a one-click option to pop any HTML 5 video and plays it on a floating window. You can install the extension from the App Store for free with this link.
Once you have the extension installed, it won’t appear in the Safari web browser, yet. We need to enable it from the Settings page. Open the Safari Web browser and open Preferences by pressing “CMD+,” or clicking Preferences on the Safari Menu from the Menu bar.
On the Settings page, you would find the icon strip on the top. Click the Extensions button on the far right.
Here you’d see all the installed extensions for Safari. Click the checkbox next to PiPifier Button to enable the extension in the browser.
Now, simply go back to the Safari browser window and load a video. The extension works with most videos that use HTML5. When the video starts playing, click the PIP button to the left of the URL bar. That’s it. Your video now plays in a floating window that stays on top of every window.
If you can’t get the video to pop, pause the video, click the PIP button and it should pop right out. Enjoy!
2. Watch Videos in Picture in Picture Mode on Chrome
If you use Chrome and don’t intend on switching to mac, there’s a similar solution for you as well. If you are using Chrome 70 or higher, PiP is built into the browser. All you have to do is right-click on any video to access it. However, on some video players that already have their right-click menu (like YouTube), you have to right-click the video, and then right-click the video again to see the PiP option.
Unfortunately, the PiP mode on Chrome fails to work on most sites like Netflix and Amazon Prime videos. To enforce PiP mode on all sites, Google has made a similar extension that allows you to pop any video from its webpage and float on the screen. Go ahead and install the Chrome extension using this link.
Once the extension is installed, it would show up in the browser, next to the URL bar. Simply open a website and play any video that you like. Click the PIP extension button on the top right, next to the URL bar to pop the window.
That’s it, your video now floats on the screen above all the open windows. The videos stay on top even if you minimize Chrome, just like the Safari Extension.
Final Words
These were two quick ways to watch any online video in Picture in Picture mode. You can use Safari or Chrome to achieve the functionality and there is no difference between the two extensions. If you want to watch offline videos in PIP mode using the QuickTime Player, then you can simply select “Float on Top” from the Menu bar when playing a video. What do you think of these methods? Let me know in the comments below or join me on Twitter.
