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Ever been in that situation where you’re going on a really long trip with the family and kids and you know the roads are long and cell phone towers are probably scarce? You’ll most likely not get any signal and that means you won’t be able to use the internet on your phone. If you’re like me sometimes you just want some peace and quiet while driving and you need to keep your kids preoccupied. Without something to do, your kids will be screaming in the back for hours if they don’t have YouTube.
I think I might have a solution for you regarding watching videos from YouTube without an internet connection. How do you watch YouTube videos without an internet connection? This is where downloading and storing videos onto your mobile device becomes important. You can do this in one of many ways, but the main way is by using Google’s YouTube premium services. This service allows you to download almost any video you can find on YouTube and play it back again without ever requiring an internet connection. Keeping the family satisfied will create a much better driving experience and perhaps help you focus on getting to that destination safely.
There are a few ways to download YouTube videos but keep in mind, Google who owns YouTube would much rather you watch the videos by streaming. This is because content creators make a living based on viewing time and clicks so if you’ve downloaded the video, it’s hard for anyone to gauge how often you’ve watched it.
I will always recommend that you support your content creators as much as you can by watching their videos and subscribing. But if you must download videos or even music because where you’re going does not have good cellular service, here’s a perfectly acceptable way allowed by Google to download and watch.
The answer might shock you but Google is actually okay with you downloading as many videos and as much music as you want IF you are a YouTube Premium subscriber.
Below I cover just how easy it really is to get this content downloaded straight onto your device and why it really is a good deal for people who immerse themselves in content.
How to download and watch YouTube videos offline on any smartphone
- Open up your YouTube app
- Start watching the video you want to download
- Below the title of the video, tap on Download
- Select your video resolution
- The Download icon will now change to Downloaded with a check above it
How to view all your downloaded videos from the YouTube Premium app
- Open up the YouTube app
- Tap on Library on the bottom tab
- Tap on Downloads
How to change the default download settings on the YouTube app
- Open up the YouTube app
- Tap on your ID icon above
- Tap on Settings
- Tap on Background & downloads
How to download YouTube Music for offline listening and watching
- Open the YouTube Music app
- Find and listen to the song you want to download
- Tap on the 3-vertical dots option
- Tap on Download
How to view all your downloaded music on YouTube Music
- Open the YouTube Music app
- Tap on Library on the bottom tab
- Tap on Downloads
What is YouTube Premium?
Google has bundled up the video service you known and love called YouTube with YouTube Music all in one package. As a paid subscriber, you get to watch and listen to YouTube absolutely ad-free. You can also turn off the screen and listen to any video and song. You can even download almost any content you wish.
Who is YouTube Premium Competing Against?
I’ve compiled a list of reasons why I think YouTube Premium is the best content and music service out there. And I can confidently say that at the moment, no other service can match YouTube Premium. Based on the content amount alone, YouTube out matches every single other service that exists. Content creators are just magically drawn towards a YouTube first mindset. The reason for this is because the audience is there. YouTube is perhaps the second largest search engine on the planet. Since it’s so highly popular among the viewers, it only makes sense that the content creators are flocking towards where the money takes them.
YouTube Premium is just one of the multitude of video and music content streaming services that exists today. Within this realm, the major players are currently Apple Music, Spotify, Pandora and just about dozen other services. There are so many that they are hard to keep up.
YouTube Premium is also the best music streaming service hands down
YouTube Premium has made downloading and saving videos on your smartphone device for offline use incredibly easy.
Now, I know YouTube is mostly known for being a video streaming service but it’s also a very well capable music streaming service as well. With a YouTube Premium account, you are also given unrestricted ad-free access to YouTube Music as well. With YouTube Music, you are also allowed to download music right onto your device and play them offline.
YouTube Premium has much more content than any of its rivals when you factor in both video and music. You’ll hear a lot about how other streaming services have roughly 50 million songs or more in their arsenal and that’s about the average give or take a few million.
Apple Music, Spotify, Pandora, and most other services will give you music-only content. However, YouTube Premium comes with both ad-free YouTube Music and YouTube videos which are growing at a phenomenal rate.
The numbers are not public, only Google really knows, but there’s speculation that if you combine all the content from all the major stream services, they still can’t overcome the amount of content found on the YouTube and YouTube Music duo Premium Network.
Now whether these videos are quality videos as well, it’s debatable. A lot of the time, there are videos on YouTube that are just plain terrible.
But most of you might be thinking, that’s an unfair comparison. Video and Audio are not the same. I get your point and I’ve put a lot of thought into it. But if you think about it, it all ends up as a category of entertainment. One other thing that sets YouTube Premium apart from the rest is the ability to just listen to videos.
You can watch videos with your screen turned off with YouTube Premium
This is perhaps one of the most awesome features for YouTube Premium members. At least for me, its quite possibly the most valuable benefits of being a member. I am always taking advantage of this feature. I find it so helpful. My phone has also benefited from lasting longer in the day. With the screen turned off, your phone isn’t drained so quickly.
Here’s an example of how much power I’ve saved simply from turning off the screen. I watch YouTube a lot during work. I mean a lot. I’d say maybe between 1 to 2 hours total a day. Before YouTube Premium, by the end of the work day, I’d have just about 30% of my battery left on my phone. That was hardly enough to feel confident that it will last me until bedtime. But after Premium, I am coming home with almost 60% still. I’m amazed.
This feature turns all these YouTube videos into music or a podcast.
YouTube isn’t just about watching funny videos. It also has great learning content, news, informational content and much, much more. In many of these videos, you may not even need to watch it, just listen to it.
Cost
YouTube Premium has the option to feature a family plan where you can invite up to a total of 6 members for a very low monthly price. If you divide the plan by the number of people you share it with, that’s basically how much it’s going to cost each person.
One caveat that goes with purchasing a family account is that you’ll have to also create a family group account with Gmail and list the people in your “family”. Google doesn’t say these people have to be blood-related, so you get to pick and choose who is a part of your “family” and who is not.
If you want to know more about the plans, what you get out of it, and what you don’t get out of it, check out their website (YouTube Premium).
Why can’t I download a YouTube video?
You must have a YouTube Premium account. Only then will the download option actually work. If you press the download button, you’ll be offered the chance to subscribe.
Even with YouTube Premium, content creators can stop you from downloading their videos
Content creators have the ability to restrict downloading of their videos
While offline, how do I watch these downloaded videos?
As of right now, your downloaded videos and music can only be viewed or listened to on the respected YouTube or YouTube Music app.
What quality can you download YouTube videos?
The highest quality you can download it is in 1080p HD so videos playing with 8K HDR is currently off-limits.
If you don’t have enough storage on your phone, you won’t be able to download
If you are running low on storage space (5% left), you won’t be able to download anything until you free up spaces
