- YouTube has rolled out support for Android Auto with playback controls
- The catch is that it doesn't play videos, and you can only stream audio
- You also need YouTube Premium for it to work, as it's essentially background play
YouTube is finally rolling out support for Android Auto, the app that allows you to mirror your smartphone screen to your car’s dashboard — but before your excitement takes over, you should note that it comes with a slew of limitations.
The video platform has been quite silent with this launch however, and instead of formally announcing the integration, users online have come across it themselves like in this Reddit post. As it stands, Android Auto is pretty strict with what you can and can’t do while your car is in motion which, when it comes to eliminating visual distractions while driving, is a safety no-brainer. That said, YouTube on Android Auto is not the YouTube you know and love.
For starters, Android Auto removes one of YouTube’s key elements and that’s its video player, meaning you won’t be able to watch anything and can only listen to audio playback just like the best music streaming services. In theory, you can play any type of content you want, but you’ll only be able to listen to its audio — which won’t be a huge setback if you exclusively listen to podcast episodes or videos that are ideal for audio-only listening.
Though it takes away YouTube’s biggest functionality, it doesn’t come as a huge surprise and is arguably the most sensible thing to do to ensure safe driving. Not only that, it doesn’t offer full-screen viewing or the option to browse for content, and playback controls are also limited on top of that.
As reported by 9to5Google, you won’t be able to skip forward within a video, and the current skip button will take you straight to the next video in the queue. You can still pause and play audio from the player screen, but you won’t have access to YouTube’s complete slew of playback tools.
Until now, users have been relying on workarounds to get YouTube working on Android Auto, so I can see this integration being widely welcomed. But it wouldn’t be classic YouTube if there weren’t a YouTube Premium catch.
A secret YouTube Premium persuasion strategy
Did you think you could get away with streaming YouTube through Android Auto for free? I hate to break it to you, but you’re going to need a YouTube Premium subscription in order to do so.
In typical YouTube style, Android Auto integration is another functionality that’s being paywalled behind Premium and it’s all because of background play, which is required for streaming through Android Auto. As this is a tool only available to paying subscribers, only those with a membership will be able to stream YouTube on a car dashboard, and the way I look at it is this is yet another strategy YouTube is using to get more people signing up to Premium.
The cheapest way to do this is through YouTube Premium Lite which costs $7.99 / £7.99 / AU$8.99 a month, a relatively new tier that was launched last year. Background viewing and offline downloads were added just a few months back, but while it offers majority ad-supported viewing, this doesn’t apply to music and other music-related content. If you’re like me and use YouTube for all things music and live performances, the standard Premium plan is your best option.
