Netflix may soon let you start watching shows that haven't finished downloading

Netflix has been around for a long time, and as such, it offers once of the best feature sets of any streaming service. Netflix has allowed users to download select shows and movies since 2016, but it seems to be working on a major improvement to this feature. As spotted by XDA during an app teardown, we may soon be able to start watching downloaded shows before the download is complete.

<string name="label_partial_download_download_more_yes">Wait for Download</string>
<string name="label_partial_download_end_of_downloaded">"You've reached the end of what's been downloaded so far. Please connect to the internet to continue watching."</string>
<string name="label_partial_download_not_ready">You need to download a bit more to start watching.</string>

The teardown in question is of v7.58.0, where several new strings point towards watching content before the download is complete. There are several use cases where this could come in handy. When I take the train to London, my connection is fast when I have it, but it's often spotty. With this feature, I'd be able to start the download while at the station, and then begin watching the Brooklyn 99 heist while it downloads in the background.

Of course, downloading things over Wi-Fi before you leave home is always going to be the best course of action, but if you missed an episode or you binge through the whole season faster than you expected and need more, this is something that could save the day.

Naturally, there's no timeline for when this will go live, if at all, but hopefully, it'll be soon.

Source: XDA Developers