YouTube allows creators to pick a custom thumbnail for their videos, however, that isn't possible for video playlists. Back in June, it was noticed that YouTube was working on a new option to let users pick a custom thumbnail for playlists. Finally, the feature is rolling out to YouTube users on Android.
By default, YouTube video playlists automatically use the thumbnail from the first video and set it as the playlist thumbnail. To change this, users need to move a different video on top of the playlists. With the new YouTube Android update app version 19.37.35, users can now set custom thumbnails for playlists, though there are some caveats.
Notably, the ability to set custom video playlist thumbnails is only available to verified accounts. This means a vast section of users won't be able to use this feature by default, and they have to verify their phone number on the platform to gain access to the feature.
Once the user has verified their account, they will see a new "pencil" icon in the bottom right corner of the playlist thumbnails. Upon tapping that button will open the edit menu, which only offers the option to create thumbnails with AI or remove the custom image.
This means that you won't be able to set a custom thumbnail of your liking, but have to use one based on a few preset themes, very similar to the AI-enabled album art generation feature on YouTube Music.
After selecting a theme, the feature will automatically generate sample thumbnails based on a default prompt. You will get to tweak some sections of the prompt by tapping the underlined text, but won't let you enter a fully customizable prompt. You can also use the "Randomize" button to generate a new set of images.
Although this feature is a good option to pick a thumbnail for videos, many users won't prefer the option and would have preferred an actual option to let them upload and set their images as video playlists thumbnails. Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Source and images: Android Authority
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