Unlocking the Value of YouTube Premium: A Comprehensive Review
YouTube Premium is a subscription service offered by YouTube that provides various features and benefits for users willing to pay $14 a month. There are a lot of features I think most people don't know about that could dramatically change your experience with YouTube, depending on how you use the platform. In this review, we'll explore what YouTube Premium includes, whether it's worth the price tag, and delve into YouTube Live TV.
Firstly, let's address one of the most appreciated feature of YouTube Premium—ad-free viewing. For content creators like myself, who produce videos with numerous clips and trailers, avoiding ads is a significant time-saver. The $14 monthly fee essentially buys back valuable time that would otherwise be spent watching ads. Whether you're using it for work or entertainment, watching movie trailers, podcasts, or long music sets with the absence of ad interruptions enhances the viewing experience overall.
YouTube also offers a $23 per month family plan. It is important to note that this is great for households with family members that like to watch drastically different things. Keeping the profiles separate allows the algorithm to be tailored to each individual user, further enhancing your experience. Personally, my family watches a lot of stuff together so I don't have a need for separate accounts.
But there’s more! The value of YouTube Premium extends beyond the ad-free viewing. Here’s some other features to note:
Background Play is great, especially for podcasts or music. You can simply turn your screen off and continue listening to whatever you were watching. I'll often listen to podcasts or music while I'm cleaning the house. And even though I do use Spotify for music as well, which we're going to get to in a minute, I still often listen directly through YouTube. Background play is one of my favorite premium features.
Picture-in-picture has a similar benefit. Particularly useful for desktop users who want to continue watching content like podcasts while working. The ability to throw the picture-in-picture overlay anywhere on screen and continue working with minimal distractions is a nice add-on but probably not the main appeal.
Downloadable content for offline viewing, similar to what you might do on Netflix, is advantageous for travelers or those with limited internet access. If you're often in a place where you have no signal and you want to watch YouTube, the download feature is a fantastic one to have. But if you don't do that, it may be a feature you never use.
"Continue watching" is another great feature for people who use and consume a lot of YouTube. This feature allows you to pick up videos where you left off and is only available to premium users. This is great for me personally. I've got young kids, a busy life, and I'm often interrupted, so being prompted to continue where I left off is very valuable to me.
4K Content for premium users only. Now, this is something they're experimenting with and it is not official but it makes sense to me. There's so much data being streamed on YouTube constantly. Other streaming services already do this. They charge a premium for 4K and up content. I would imagine it's only a matter of time before YouTube does the same officially.
That brings us to one of the other biggest benefits—YouTube Music Premium is included with your YouTube Premium subscription. A $9.99 per month value included for free and it is an exceptional music streaming service. Personally, I have used Spotify for a decade now. I'm embedded with it. I've got countless playlists. I love the user interface. However, I did experiment with YouTube Music for a while, including testing sound quality. The sound quality is just as good as Spotify, the user interface is great, you get a lot of the same premium features, and you have access to potentially even more content than you do through Spotify. You recall some artists pulled their content from Spotify. It's not really the case with YouTube. In my opinion, YouTube Music and Spotify are almost at the same level, so when you factor that in, the cost of YouTube Premium comes way down, especially if you're going to take full advantage of YouTube Music.
Moving on to YouTube Live TV, it's essential to differentiate between YouTube Premium and YouTube Live TV—they're separate products. YouTube Live TV functions as a cable TV alternative, offering 124 channels, unlimited DVR space, and up to six accounts. However, the service is laden with commercials, resembling traditional cable TV.
Considering the price point of over $70 per month for YouTube Live TV, it's crucial to assess whether the content justifies the cost. While the service provides access to a lot of channels (see here), the abundance of commercials may deter some users, like myself. I don't see any reason to pay this kind of price for commercial-heavy television when there are numerous other streaming platforms that you can combine to achieve access to all the content you want without so many ads. Here’s a few streaming platform combinations for the same $70-75 per month price point:
Netflix Premium, Amazon Prime, ad-free Hulu / Disney bundle with ESPN Plus included, as well as Paramount Plus with Showtime included (or Walmart Plus with Paramount Plus included, which will save you additional money if you shop for groceries at Walmart).
YouTube Premium, Netflix standard (which still includes HD), Amazon Prime, Peacock Premium, Hulu with ads, Stars, and AMC Plus, which also includes Shudder.
YouTube Premium, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Paramount Plus, Hulu, and HBO Max.
There's more and better current content being released on those other platforms than most of the cable networks, but those are just some of my recommendations.
In conclusion, YouTube Premium offers an array of features that enhance the user experience, particularly for avid YouTube consumers. The ad-free viewing, background play, and YouTube Music Premium integration contribute most to its appeal. As for YouTube Live TV, while it provides access to numerous channels and DVR capabilities, the over-abundance of commercials may diminish its value compared to alternative streaming services. Ultimately, users should evaluate their entertainment needs and preferences to determine whether YouTube Premium or YouTube Live TV is the right choice for them.
Quick side note: Do not pay for YouTube Premium or other services like this through Apple. They charge an extra fee. You're essentially paying $5 per month extra for the privilege of ordering this service through Apple. They're not adding any value, so be warned.
