YouTube is rolling out a series of updates, including new playback speed controls, collaborative playlist features, and a sleep timer. Offering more customisation and control to both casual viewers and content creators, some of the features will be rolled out in upcoming weeks.
"This time around, expect over two dozen improvements headed to YouTube, each designed with viewers and creators in mind. These updates include highly requested features like fine-tunable playback speed, allowing for adjustments in 0.05 increments. You’ll also find improved browsing in landscape (coming later this year for our iOS users!) with greater responsiveness, and larger thumbnails and bigger text. Additionally, visual improvements across YouTube simplify the app, helping users dive into the content without missing a beat," shares YouTube in its blog post.
One of the most notable updates is the more precise playback speed options. Users can now adjust speeds in 0.05 increments, a change from the previous 0.25 intervals. This gives viewers finer control over how fast or slow they watch content, although the maximum speed remains capped at 2x.
Additionally, the platform is enhancing its miniplayer, allowing users to resize and move the video window while browsing and to make it easier to navigate YouTube while continuing to watch content.
Collaborative playlists are also receiving an upgrade. Users will soon be able to share playlists with others via links or, in a future update, a QR code. This feature will allow multiple people to contribute to a playlist, and later this year, viewers will be able to vote on which videos to include, adding an interactive element to playlist creation.
"It also allows for further interaction with creators: a creator could use this feature to have their viewers rank their favorite unboxings or reviews."
Users can also design their own custom thumbnails for playlists using their own photos or create new ones with generative AI. To do so, users just need to choose an image from their camera roll, and personalise it with text, filters, or stickers. To generate a thumbnail with AI, they need to tap "Create with AI," pick a theme, and choose from the AI-powered creations.
For those who enjoy watching YouTube before bed, the newly added sleep timer will help ensure videos don’t keep playing all night. The feature, initially tested with Premium users, allows viewers to set a timer to pause playback after a set duration, with options ranging from 10 minutes to an hour. It will now be available to all users on mobile devices.
These updates, along with visual tweaks and more, are rolling out across web, mobile, TV, and YouTube Music.
