NewPipe: A Lightweight YouTube App For Android.
YouTube ads are getting more and more annoying every day. Where before you could see a rare ad in the middle of a long video, now you are almost guaranteed to come across dozens just by watching short videos.
But what other alternative is there? Sure, you can get a premium subscription, but unless you’re willing to shell out a few dollars each month, there are very few reliable ways to watch YouTube videos without ads.
Enter NewPipe. It is an open source Android app that offers the ability to watch ad-free YouTube without paying a dime.
But is it safe to use NewPipe? How it works? Should it be used at all? Here is an overview.
Introduction to NewPipe
The concept of an alternative YouTube client is nothing new. Community developers have long tried to create applications that interact with the YouTube API to play videos without showing ads.
YouTube Vanced was the most popular of these free clients, at least until Google shut it down earlier this year. This has left the market wide open to a competitor, and NewPipe is rapidly gaining momentum.
Although it started out as a YouTube video client, since then it has also been able to play SoundCloud, PeerTube and Bandcamp content. At the heart of it all is a user-friendly interface that’s smooth and responsive, and thankfully free of intrusive ads.
How Does NewPipe Work?
When playing videos from a service like PeerTube, NewPipe simply uses the official PeerTube API to get the content. But this is not possible for proprietary platforms like YouTube because the API is severely limited.
However, YouTube videos – along with their metadata and captions – are public. NewPipe works by parsing this content and presenting it with its own flawless interface, giving you an ad-free YouTube experience.
You still get all the features normally associated with YouTube – playlists, bookmarks, comments, etc. And because the app doesn’t depend on Google Play Services, you can download and install it on any Android device, even non-Google custom ROMs play store. .
Is NewPipe Safe?
Many people are hesitant to use a little-known third-party app that isn’t even on the Google Play Store. After all, malicious apps that steal user data do exist, often masquerading as useful tools.
But NewPipe has no such problems. This is an open source application hosted on Github, which means that its codebase has been verified by thousands of developers around the world who are actively working to update and maintain the application.
It’s not available on the Google Play Store because it directly competes with YouTube, not because it’s not secure. This is actually more secure as it also protects your data and privacy rather than selling your information to advertisers.
How to Install NewPipe on an Android Phone
Since the NewPipe app is not available on the Google Play Store, you need to install it in another way. If you use F-Droid (an alternative mobile app store), you can download it from there. Otherwise, you will have to install directly with the NewPipe apk.
Please note that while we will be demonstrating the process for Android phones, NewPipe can also be installed on Android TV. The app works very well on TVs; you even have a button to share the video with Kodi. You will just need to download the apk after downloading it from NewPipe.net.
Go to the official website to download NewPipe. Click the “Get NewPipe” button to go to the download page.
Here you can choose between the latest version and legacy version for older android devices. For most users, the new version of NewPipe will work just fine.
The browser will warn you about the risks of downloading the APK file. To continue, select Download Anyway.
To install NewPipe from this apk, open the Files app on your phone (or any other file management app you like).
Navigate to the directory containing the NewPipe apk (usually the Downloads folder) and tap on the three dots next to its name. Select Install.
By default, Android phones do not allow installation from apk files. This is necessary to ensure your safety and prevent accidental installation of malware. Click “Settings” to change the resolution and continue with the installation.
Check the box Allow from this source. If you are concerned about security risks, you can always disable it again after installing NewPipe.
You will now be prompted to install the application. Select Install to continue.
Navigating NewPipe’s Interface
NewPipe is a very intuitive application. Most of the features you expect from YouTube are already implemented, plus a few more features. However, here is a step by step guide to learn the app.
NewPipe has three main tabs. When you open the app for the first time, you are greeted with a trending page. There are suggestions on this page that have been influenced by your browsing history, so give her some time to explore your models.
The second tab is for your subscriptions. Content from any channels you subscribe to will appear here. You can also divide the channels you subscribe to into groups, which is very convenient for separating different types of videos.
Finally, there is the bookmarks tab. You can bookmark playlists to watch later and they will all appear on this tab.
The hamburger menu shows all of these tabs, plus a few other options, including Downloads, History, and Settings.
Preferences provides you with a list of submenus, each containing options to customize a particular aspect of NewPipe. You can change settings such as the appearance of the app, the location of downloaded videos, privacy settings, and more.
Watching and Downloading a YouTube Video on NewPipe
NewPipe allows you not only to watch YouTube videos without ads, but also to download them to your device in the format of your choice. Here is a brief overview.
Find a YouTube video or channel by clicking the search icon in the top right corner of the app.
Select a video from the search results.
The video will open in a familiar interface. You can expand the video to full screen or tap the headphone icon to play it in the background. Video resolution can also be selected at the top, which displays the current video quality.
Next to the video quality option is a chapters icon. Clicking on it will open a list of chapters created for the video, and you can jump to the corresponding section.
There are three icons at the bottom of the screen. The first one is for comments and is selected by default. Switching to the middle icon displays recommended videos that will automatically play thereafter.
The third option at the bottom is for describing the video.
Now just below the video are some useful options. The “Add to” button is designed to add a video to a playlist available on the bookmarks tab.
And, of course, there is the Download button. Selecting the icon brings up a small window where you can specify a file name and select the download format (both video and audio files can be downloaded). Click OK to start downloading.
Click the Downloads tab on the hamburger menu on the home screen to view all your downloaded videos. You can view their progress, pause downloads, or delete videos you no longer want to keep.
The great thing about NewPipe’s download feature is that the videos are not attached to the app itself. This means that, unlike the YouTube Premium download feature, you can copy these videos and play them on any device without having to install NewPipe. This makes NewPipe a great YouTube downloader, even if you don’t care about the rest of its features.
How Do You Stream Other Services on NewPipe?
YouTube is not the only platform supported by NewPipe. The customer can also access other leading video and audio streaming services such as PeerTube, Bandcamp and SoundCloud.
To switch to another service, open the hamburger menu and then click the arrow next to YouTube. Now you can choose any of the platforms supported by NewPipe.
Should You Switch to NewPipe for Watching YouTube Videos?
NewPipe is a great client for YouTube. Since it naturally blocks ads, you no longer have to worry about ads interrupting video playback again. What’s more, it blocks YouTube’s intrusive data collection, protecting your privacy.
And although the app started out with a primitive approach, it has gradually evolved into a full-featured YouTube client. You can even search for YouTube music in NewPipe and play it in the background, which was not possible with YouTube Vanced.
NewPipe also works well as a YouTube video downloader, giving you the desired quality MP4 or MP3 file from any YouTube video. This makes it a great free alternative to all those poorly designed YouTube downloader sites.
NewPipe: A Lightweight YouTube App For Android
NewPipe: A Lightweight YouTube App For Android