According to a lot of people, Google Chrome is the best browser and Microsoft Edge is the best Chrome downloader. However, if you are an Apple user invested in the Apple ecosystem, there’s a bigger chance that your daily browser is Apple’s own Safari. This offering from Apple is not as versatile as Chrome at times, but it’s still easier than getting a third-party app and Apple’s ecosystem makes Safari, and other Apple apps alike, very pleasant to use too.
One of the issues with Safari is it’s not known for its support for extensions, or plugins. This does not mean Safari does not support extensions. On the Mac App Store, there is a whole section dedicated to Safari Extensions.
You have to know what you are looking for.
One particular issue I’ve been having for years with Safari on the Mac, or rather YouTube in Safari on the Mac, is I do not consistently get the best picture quality, even though my internet speed is good enough for HD and I really don’t mind YouTube buffering for a few seconds occasionally. This is really more of a YouTube problem because they do not allow users to specify a picture quality in their settings. Rather YouTube loads in whatever quality it loads the fastest. YouTube can switch to a higher picture quality as the video plays and you can also manually change the quality setting for each video but it’s a pain.
Fortunately, there is an app, in this case in the form of a Safari extension, for that.
Auto HD + FPS for YouTube macOS Safari Extension
“Auto HD + FPS for YouTube” is a free Safari extension available on the Mac App Store. With the extension enabled, you can specify the view quality and player size. Whatever setting you choose will also persist the next time you open YouTube in Safari. I’m going with 1080p on my Mac. I have a wired connection using a Thunderbolt to ethernet adapter but it’s an 8-year-old device and 1080p is all it gets, so none of that sweet 4K stuff.
To get the Auto HD + FPS for YouTube extension, simply click on this link and it should pull it up in the Mac App Store. If you are not a fan of clicking on links you don’t know, which you shouldn’t be, search for the name in the Mac App Store.
And, no you don’t need this extension on an iPhone or iPad because you’ll be using the YouTube app where it’s a whole other story. This extension is available for iOS and iPadOS though.
Interested in learning more tips and tricks to make your YouTube experience better? Check out these posts of ours.
- How to Download YouTube Videos without A Premium Membership
- Softorino YouTube Converter 2 (SYC2) – Perfect Desktop YouTube Downloader App
