YouTube bingers can now set ‘take a break’ reminders

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full screen youtube iPad safari
Is it time you took a break from YouTube?
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Hello, my name is Killian and I’m a YouTube addict.

I know I’m not the only one. There’s a large number of us out there. But now we have help. YouTube’s new “take a break” reminders let you know when it’s time to put down your phone and experience life outside of videos.

Here’s how you use them.

It’s easy to enjoy YouTube on your smartphone, tablet, TV, or desktop, but it takes real willpower to leave. You might promise yourself you’ll watch just one video, but you will inevitably stumble across others that you just have to see. Before you know it, you’ve wasted an hour or more.

You might not even notice how much time has passed during your binge — especially if you’re enjoying a live-stream that shows no signs of stopping. But now it’s easier to keep track with take a break reminders.

YouTube gets ‘take a break’ reminders

Inside the Settings menu in the latest versions of the YouTube app, you’ll find an option titled “Remind me to take a break.” Enable it and YouTube will alert you when it’s time to put down your phone or tablet, get up off the couch, and do something else.

You can choose to receive reminders every 15, 30, 60, 90, or 180 minutes — depending on how much time you have to spare and how lenghty you want your binges to be.

YouTube won’t actually prevent you from watching for longer if you want to, but its alerts are a helpful reminder that you’re being unproductive. They’re the guilt trip you sometimes need to stop procrastinating.

You’ll find take a break reminders inside YouTube version 13.17 or later on mobile. To get into the Settings menu, simply tap your profile picture in the top-right corner of the app.

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