YouTube Shorts gets 2x playback speed, Clear Screen mode and more updates
YouTube has announced a series of updates for Shorts aimed at improving the viewing experience. The platform is introducing 2x playback speed, a new Clear Screen mode, replacing the like button with a heart icon, and removing the dislike button in favor of more personalized feedback options.
Published By: Deepti Ratnam | Published: Jun 26, 2026, 10:30 AM (IST)
YouTube is introducing a whole new batch of features designed to speed up, purify and personalize the short video experience, for YouTube Shorts. New features in the latest updates include a 2x playback speed option, revamped video interaction and a video distraction-free mode.
Google-owned platform claims its changes will provide a more user-friendly experience of Shorts. According to the company, rollout has begun, and noted that the features will be rolled out over time, so that some users will have access to them before others.
The updates are part of YouTube's efforts to crack the lucrative short-form video market, where it is battling with rivals like TikTok and Instagram Reels.
YouTube's Shorts allows users to watch videos at 2X
The latest update comes with the most significant feature you'll find: playback speed option in YouTube Shorts at 2x. Users can now play videos at twice the original speed, to finish off videos faster, or to quickly skip to the section they see as most useful.
YouTube says the new tool will allow users to digest more content, and then replay a section of their Short at a different speed. The feature may prove helpful for tutorials, educational videos, recipes, DIY content, explainers, and product reviews, where users may wish to watch a particular section without the repetition.
YouTube thinks that shorter playbacks will allow users to flex more control over how they watch content, even though Shorts are already short. YouTube has long offered regular video players with similar controls, and it's rolling it out to its short-form video platform.
YouTube is taking the dislike button away from Shorts
One of the other interesting updates is the elimination of the dislike button on Shorts.
Instead of clicking on a dislike icon, users will now get nudged to click on the "Not Interested" or "Don't recommend this channel" button when they encounter content they don't want to see again.
These tools serve to help YouTube get a better sense of a user's tastes and enhance the algorithm that recommends videos to them, rather than just tallying up dislikes. The firm seems to be streamlining the Shorts interface and asking users for more substantive feedback to help personalise their feed even more.
The change is part of YouTube's ongoing work to decrease adverse interactions on the platform. YouTube announced in 2021 that it would no longer publicly show dislike counts on videos, as it believed that this was causing targeted harassment of creators, but creators will still be able to see the dislike count in their YouTube Studio account.
Thumbs-up button replaced with a heart
YouTube will also make a minor tweak to its visual format, replacing the thumbs up icon with a heart emoji icon in Shorts.
The base operation is unchanged and users can now express their appreciation for videos they like. The new icon is designed for a more relaxed, warm, and expressive interaction that would better match the nature of short-form content.
The update is similar to what many other social media sites have seen, with the heart icon replacing the thumbs-up emoji as the favored symbol for positive engagement.
Clear Screen mode - gets rid of any disruptions on screen
The other new feature being added with the update is Clear Screen mode.
This mode temporarily obscures interface elements like captions, comments, buttons and creator information and other interface controls on screen. This will provide the viewer with a cleaner play back and they won't be distracted from the video itself.
It may be particularly helpful for Shorts with a lot of art, photos, travel videos, recipes or film content that certain elements on the screen might be blocking out important content.
Users can easily switch to the normal interface at any time to communicate with the video or comment and share information.
YouTube keeps improving the Shorts app
The update emphasizes YouTube's commitment to enhancing Shorts, as competition in the short-form video market continues to mount.
Ever since launching Shorts, YouTube has been gradually adding new tools, creator features, monetisation tools, and AI-driven tools in a bid to draw in audiences and creators. The platform has also further embedded Shorts into the core of the main YouTube app, enabling users to easily find short-form videos alongside longer content.
With faster playback, improved interface and streamlined engagement options, YouTube is looking to make Shorts fun and give users more control of how they watch via the videos.
Rollout is underway
YouTube claims that all of the new Shorts features will be released gradually, so users might not include all of them right away.
When it is available, users will be able to watch Shorts at double speed, experience a clearer viewing interface with the Clear Screen mode, have the option to like videos with a heart emoji, and no longer use a dislike button, but instead use the Not Interested and Don't recommend this channel options.
The new move is another in a long series of initiatives YouTube is implementing in an attempt to maintain its presence in Shorts, as well as making the platform more fun and accessible to its growing international user base.
Get latest Tech and Auto news from Techlusive on our WhatsApp Channel, Facebook, X (Twitter), Instagram and YouTube.