Google tests automatic video preview playback in search results on Android

The Google app for smartphones will automatically play video previews in the near future. The search giant will start in the United Kingdom and the United States and then expand the test to other countries.

Google claims that thanks to automatic video playback, users will find the information they are looking for faster. The feature will be widely available this week in the Google app for Android and the Android version of browser Chrome. A gif from Google shows how the function works.

The search giant allows videos to be played without sound on WiFi connections. This is a preview of the video, so the phone does not have to load the entire file. There will be an option in the settings menu to do that even if the smartphone is connected to mobile networks. In the same settings it is also possible to disable the autoplay function.

Google follows with the step other internet services that automatically play videos. The best known of these is Facebook, which has been playing videos automatically in the news overview for a few years on WiFi connections.