YouTube has officially launched two new features for its Premium subscribers: SharePlay enhanced 1080p video, Continue Watching, and Smart Download for iPhone and Android users. The company also announced that users will have access to YouTube Music Premium, as the company announced in a new feature adaptation to YouTube Premium. With the latest update, YouTube Premium subscribers can now download videos for offline viewing and access YouTube Music.
Features like more control and access to ad-free, offline, background play, and uninterrupted music listening are coming to YouTube Premium. More than 80 million premium members have already been enjoying the exclusive features and benefits of the YouTube experience, and YouTube Premium subscribers are getting a new update to try for even more benefits.
SharePlay
This feature allows you to watch YouTube videos with your family and friends on a FaceTime call. This feature is already available for Android users via Google Meet on Pixel devices. It is likely to expand with future updates. This feature is known as “Watch YouTube Together” on Android and iOS devices. Watch YouTube videos with other people.
Once you start sharing a YouTube video, at the bottom, there will be a green bar labeled “You are Live Sharing in Meet” or “FaceTime,” depending on your device. Do note that the people you are sharing with can pause, rewind, or fast-forward the video when it is playing.
Enhanced 1080p video.
This is 1080p HD video quality with a higher bitrate, giving extra crisp and clear quality with much more detail and motion. This feature has been spotted recently and is first rolling out to iOS, with plans to later come to the web.
Queuing
You can add videos to a queue on your device, allowing them to play on a smart TV or Chromecast device. You can control video playback with your iPhone or Android. It’s like a playlist of videos with complete control over which videos are played. All your queueing will now be synced to your other devices, including phones and tablets, giving users more control over what they have been watching. To add a video to the queue, click “More” and select “Add to Queue” on the video.
Continue watching
You can pick up where you left off on another device while switching to a device synced on Android, iOS, or the Web with the same account. This feature is useful, allowing you to switch between devices without interruption. If you stop watching a video, it will save your spot and resume playing across multiple devices.
Smart Download
You can now enable automatic downloads of recommended videos over Wi-Fi. This feature is quite similar to Netflix’s Smart Download feature and comes in handy, especially for watching videos while traveling.
Apart from these features, YouTube Premium’s latest update will bring more, such as the option to queue videos, continue watching where you last left off while switching devices, and automatically download recommended videos while connecting to Wi-Fi for offline viewing.
Many new YouTube Premium experience features are debuting with YouTube Premium. In addition, YouTube will disable all ads on its platform for its premium subscribers for $11.99 per month. Updates are slowly rolling out to users in the coming weeks.