YouTube Premium is one of the few subscriptions I don’t mind paying for. Given how inundated YouTube is with unskippable ads these days, I’m glad a paid tier exists.
In addition to an ad-free experience, a Premium subscription also includes background play and a handful of experimental features that regular users don’t get. Now, YouTube is rolling out a new experiment for Premium subscribers, and it might genuinely change how you watch videos.
It’s called “Auto Speed”, and it does what the name suggests. Instead of manually changing your playback speed , Auto Speed handles it for you. The feature automatically adjusts your video’s playback speed throughout your watch session, helping you get through content faster without losing track of what’s being said.
How to access the Auto Speed feature on YouTube
If you are a YouTube Premium subscriber, you can enable the feature from YouTube’s experimental feature right now. As of right now, even after enabling the Auto Speed experimental feature, I do not see the option to turn it on, so it appears the feature is rolling out in stages.
But YouTube has detailed the steps, so here’s what you need to do. Tap the settings button when playing a video, open Playback controls, and turn on the toggle for Auto Speed.
Now, YouTube will dynamically adjust the playback speed, allowing you to watch videos faster without any loss in comprehension.
Is there a catch?
There are a couple of things worth knowing before you get too excited. Auto Speed is only available on Android and iOS, so desktop users will have to wait or stick to manually controlling the playback speed.
It only works with English-language videos, which limits its usefulness depending on what you watch. It’s also available only until April 27, so you don’t have much time left to test it.
That said, if you are a YouTube Premium subscriber, this is a nice bonus on top of the ad-free experience