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A pinch-to-zoom feature is available for YouTube Premium users this month, letting the platform gather feedback before potentially rolling it out further.
YouTube is testing a new experimental feature that lets you zoom in and out of videos.
It will be available until 1 September for YouTube Premium subscribers only, giving the platform a month to receive feedback and refine the function before potentially rolling it out for all users.
The new feature allows users to pinch with two fingers on their screen to zoom in and out of a video.
YouTube regularly tests new features on its experiments page, letting Premium users get early access before these features are officially launched.
As noted by 9to5Google, many features on YouTube began as experimental test options, such as being able to use voice search in a browser. Another experiment brought to Premium users was easier playlist management, letting users drag and reorder upcoming videos.
How do I use it?
To enable the pinch-to-zoom feature, YouTube Premium users have to go to the Settings menu from their phone or computer. There should be a ‘try new features’ section here.
Users can also visit YouTube’s experimental features page when signed in to try new features. Currently, pinch-to-zoom is the only feature showcased on the page.
The Verge reported that the feature lets users zoom up to 8x, but noted a potential delay between joining the test and being able to use the pinch-to-zoom function.
It is unclear if this feature will become available for all users or if it will only be a Premium feature.
In 2020, YouTube restricted testing of its beta features to Premium members only, potentially as an incentive to bring more people to its ad-free subscription service.
The video platform suffered a hit to its revenue last quarter, as many tech companies flagged issues in the global ad market.
In Google’s second-quarter earnings, YouTube ad revenue rose by only 4.8pc compared to an 84pc jump in the same period last year. This was marked as its slowest ad growth in more than two years.
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