Experience Video Viewing at its Best with a Video Speed Controller

From Chrome to Firefox and Beyond

Have you struggled to follow along with video tutorials on YouTube where the speaker is going WAY too fast and it's hard to keep up? Or maybe you've watched a tediously slow video and you wish they’d hurry up and get to the point… if you find yourself in this situation all too often, you could benefit from using a video speed controller.

What is a Video Speed Controller?

A video speed controller is a cool tool that enables you to control the playback speed of a video. Want to rewind the video to catch the last 10 seconds? No problem. Need to slow things down the presenter because the speaker is talking faster than your brain can process? You're covered!

You can enhance your video viewing experience with video speed controllers.

Even if the video player doesn't have these built-in tools, you can still adjust the video speed by accelerating, slowing it down, or rewinding it by a few seconds.

Video Speed Controller on YouTube

Did you know this feature is built into YouTube’s video players? Although this may sound like a big revelation, the funny thing is, it’s right under your nose and is available on ALL YouTube videos.

Go ahead and pull up a YouTube video (that’s right, any YouTube video will do) and click the Settings icon (the one that looks like a gear next to the CC icon).

Now, the video can be sped up or slowed down by clicking Playback Speed.

That’s it! Pretty simple, right?

And there’s also a YouTube-specific video speed controller browser extension you can install. And the bonus is it doesn’t just work exclusively for videos ON YouTube. This extension is called “YouTube Playback Speed Control” and you can use this on ANY YouTube video – even ones that are embedded on other web pages.

It's easy to speed up and slow down YouTube videos with this extension by using keyboard shortcuts and all Chrome users have to do is simply install it.

The installation and use are pretty straightforward. You can either install the video speed controller extension from the Google Chrome web store or by searching Google for “Youtube Playback Speed Control”.

Once you find it, click Add to Chrome, followed by Add extension and the icon should pop up in the toolbar.

The upper right-hand corner will show you the current speed, and to increase the speed, press '+' and '-' to decrease the playback speed.

Chrome Extension

You can also find a really handy video speed controller named just that: Video Speed Controller.

Video Speed Controller is a Chrome extension and you will be able to use this on ALL pages with HTML5 videos – not just on YouTube videos. Websites and online video courses are places that might not have playback features built-in, so this allows you to have capabilities that might not otherwise be accessible.

*NOTE* This extension is available on both Firefox and Chrome browsers.

Another bonus feature of the Chrome extension is that once you learn the keyboard shortcuts, these will apply to all the videos you watch while using this extension. So, instead of having to memorize a bunch of different shortcuts for a variety of players, all you’ll need to do is is remember these (which we’ll discuss a little later).

The final pro point is you can speed your video up as fast as you want versus the built-in YouTube video player that only allows you to increase the video speed by two times.

Once you have the extension installed, you’ll see a little number in a square in the top left corner. If you hover over them, you’ll find mouse controllers for jumping ahead, back, or changing speed.

And if seeing this in the corner is annoying or distracting, just hit the ‘V’ key on your keyboard to turn it off.

In addition to the show/hide controller (V), there are a few other keyboard shortcuts you should be aware of:

• Decrease playback speed (S)
• Increase playback speed (D)
• Reset playback speed (R)
• Rewind by 10 seconds (Z)
• Fast Forward by 10 seconds (X)
• Go from the 1X speed to the default speed you have set (G)

Customize

You can customize the settings for these shortcuts by clicking the icon in the toolbar then clicking on Settings. Here, you can change video speeds to what works best for you.

Just remember, these will not auto-save so be sure to scroll down to the bottom of that screen and click Save.

Video Speed Controller for Safari

Not a Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox user? Don’t worry, Safari has a video speed controller extension, too!

Accelerate allows you to control video playback speed in Safari using customized shortcuts, right-click mouse controls, or toolbar items. And you can adjust the speed and lag of your HTML5 videos with this extension. Just like Chrome, it works with a variety of sites and isn't just limited to YouTube.

• With the press of a key, you can skip video ads.
• It supports Picture-in-Picture and AirPlay capabilities.
• And is compatible with YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, Vimeo, and more.

We mention this last bullet point specifically because there’s been some feedback that Chrome extensions affect Netflix in full quality. In contrast, the Accelerate extension allows you to watch Netflix in HD quality without any problems.

Video Speed Controller for Devices

Do you spend more time watching videos on mobile instead of your Mac or PC?

YouTube reports that more than 70% of all YouTube video viewing takes place on mobile devices! And aside from YouTube, Wyzowl notes that 90% of consumers watch videos on mobile devices.

This may have you wondering if you'll miss out on the speed control feature...

But when watching videos from the YouTube app, you can simply click the three little dots in the top right-hand corner and you’ll see the speed control setting pop up (just like you’d see on your web browser!).

If you want to speed up or slow down videos you’ve recorded, there are some great apps for that.

Mobile Video Editors

For iOS: iMovie

You already have a great tool at your disposal if you have an iPhone (iOS 13.0 or later). With the iMovie app, you can modify the speed of playback of your video. Those with no experience editing videos can easily use this tool.

In the app, import a video clip after you create a new project. The next step is to tap on the Speed icon. You can use a slider to change the playback speed of the videos (iMovie lets you choose 1/8 of the original speed or double it). You can adjust the playback speed of your video by dragging it left or right.

Does it still need adjusting? It's as simple as tapping Reset – the playback speed will be restored to its original rate!

It's free and easy and works on ALL iOS devices. Perfect for those who only want the basics without all the bells and whistles of professional video editing apps.

For Android: Video Speed: Fast Video and Slow Motion Video

Don't have an iPhone? Android also has a great tool to speed up videos or slow them down.

You can import footage from your Android and then select one of the video playback options. Video clips can be sped up or slowed down up to four times in this app. Just choose which parts of a video you want to slow down or speed up, and then export it.

*NOTE* Music may be added to any video you edit with this app, but color corrections and visual effects won't be available.

No matter what media player or device you use, there's a video speed controller extension or app to fit your needs!

Want to discuss a video project or speak to us more about any questions around video production? Please contact us to set up a free consultation!

Are you using video speed controllers to enhance your video viewing experience? Are there any pros or cons to your favorites? Please let us know in the comments.