Google Podcasts gracefully exited the stage last year, ushering podcast lovers to the YouTube Music app. Overall, the move has been a good one for users, especially considering how seamlessly podcasts are integrated within the music streaming platform.
However, regardless of the upgrades, YouTube Music’s podcast implementation has since lacked one key feature that Google Podcast users enjoyed.
Google Podcasts added a handy silence trimming feature back in 2018. As its name suggests, it essentially detected and skipped over long pauses and silent sections in podcasts. YouTube Music hasn’t previously offered an equivalent feature, but that seems to have changed sometime over the past month.
Earlier today, Reddit user Timely-Junket-2851 highlighted a new Trim silence feature appearing on podcasts on the platform (h/t Android Authority). I just checked out the app, and the feature is indeed live in stable. I’m on YouTube Music version 8.30.51.
A welcome, if delayed, arrival
“Skip stretches of silence during episodes,” reads the feature’s description on the app. It works as described on both video and audio-only podcasts, and to my surprise, doesn’t make the audio sound choppy or unnatural.
For what it’s worth, the feature’s arrival doesn’t come as a complete surprise. The streaming giant was spotted testing out the same functionality for YouTube Music in March last year. However, there’s been defending silence from Google since, making the impromptu arrival of the feature roughly one and a half years later an unexpected but welcome addition.
To try out the new feature, play any podcast and tap the playback speed button (denoted by 1x) on the bottom left of the media player. You should then see a Trim Silence toggle at the very bottom. Follow the image above for visual cues. The tool works regardless of your subscription status.
