It may be hard to believe, but YouTube Shorts has been around for five years. Following the immense success of TikTok, it was only a matter of time before competitors started offering their own versions of the app. Since that time, a lot has changed, with Shorts becoming a premier destination for short-form content. Naturally, YouTube has constantly been updating the app and its features, with the intent of giving creators and viewers the best experience possible.
We can’t wait for these changes
Today, YouTube announced new enhancements that find their way to Shorts, which will hopefully make the viewing experience better (via YouTube). Perhaps the most exciting change that is coming is Clear Mode, giving users the ability to remove the UI clutter on every video, so you can just focus on the content.
Users will also be able to control the playback speed of Shorts, watching up to two times speed in order to consume more in a shorter span of time. Shorts will also have a built-in mute option that will allow users to just enjoy their feed without any audio.
And while we saw these changes in the past, the post goes on to share that the dislike button will be removed and the thumbs-up icon will be replaced by a heart. YouTube also once again highlights that the Shorts timer can now be set to zero in order to disable it from your YouTube feed.
For the most part, there’s a lot to like here about these updates. The most important is going to be the Clear Mode, which will provide all the visuals and none of the UI clutter. It’s something that we’ve seen from competitors, so it’s good to see YouTube making it happen on its own platform.
We like the addition of watching clips at two times speed as well. If you have limited time and like to enjoy smaller clips, YouTube Shorts is a great way to kill some time. Be sure to check out these new changes in the app. The new features will be available starting today. Just be sure to update you YouTube app to the latest version.
