5 tips to make the most of the YouTube app for Android

11 October, 2016 — Charlotte

Believe it or not, there was once a time where YouTube didn’t exist. Before YouTube came along people didn’t really have much of an outlet for their videos except the odd TV show which showcased funny videos. All that changed however when in February 2005, www.youtube.com was officially registered as a domain name. In the months that followed, the video hosting site went from non-existent to being a necessity around the globe. 

As it has evolved, so has our technology, and now almost every single smartphone will have the YouTube app installed (and if you are using an Android then it will definitely be pre-installed). That said, just because YouTube has taken over the world doesn’t mean everyone knows all of the little tips and tricks which can help us make the most of the experience. So read on and discover some helpful tips for your media watching pleasure.

Experience 360 Degree Videos From Your Device

Yes you read that right, it’s possible to enjoy videos with 360 degree viewing potential. How do you unlock this cool little feature? Well, it’s not available on every video floating on YouTube so you’ll have to search for “360 Degrees Video” and then pick one of the results. Providing it’s legit, you’ll be able to move your device around in all possible angles and discover a whole new world of video…

Limit Mobile Data Usage

When we are out and about using our 4G data plans, we don’t really want to be streaming tons of HD videos as it’ll eat our data allowance quicker than you can charge your device. To rectify this problem you simple need to open the app, press the three dots in the top right (before watching any videos) and then from the “Settings” screen tap on “General”. From here you’ll be able to enable “Limit Mobile Data Usage” which means that whenever you aren’t connected to WiFi, your streaming won’t be the perfect quality that’ll eat your data.

Watch Videos Later

Not everyone has the time to sit there and watch videos whenever they want, so YouTube have a handy little option to watch videos at a later date. Simply tap the video you want to watch and then tap the icon which looks like 3 horizontal lines and a plus symbol (similar to =+, only with three lines instead of two). This will bring up some options for you to add to a playlist to watch later on in your day.

Change Location Settings

Some videos are location locked, meaning that you can’t watch it if you’re not in that particular country. Well we shouldn’t let that stop us. Navigate to your YouTube settings by tapping the three dots in the top right corner, tap on “General” and then select “Content Location”. You’ll be presented with a whole array of different countries and by enabling one, you’ll see the YouTube videos available for that location. Not always necessary, but it could come in handy somewhere down the line.

Clear Search History

If you’ve been searching for some stuff you probably shouldn’t have been then this little trick will be a God-send for you. It’s pretty self-explanatory, it allows you to remove the search history from your device. While on the home screen for the YouTube app, simply tap the three little dots in the top right corner, navigate to “Privacy” and then “Clear Search History”. There’s also an option here to remove all of your watched history, just in-case you’re a little ware that someone might be able to find out what you’ve watched even without your search history.

And there you go, 5 little tips and tricks to enhance your experience. If you have any cool tips of your own then let us know in the comments below, and if you don’t, then enjoy the fruits of our labor and try some of the above 5 out for yourself.