5 Hidden Disney+ Features You Need To Change

Disney+ is a streaming service that is well worth your money if you are a fan of their properties — both owned and purchased. However, a library of countless movies and shows, including beloved animated classics (and their soulless live-action remakes) is virtually worthless without a suite of features.

When you scroll through Disney+'s settings and catalog of content, you will experience a veritable deluge of features. You can use the Shareplay feature on iPads, iPhones, or Apple TV to watch content with friends and family while on a FaceTime call, and the "Extras" tab in many movies and shows includes bloopers and special behind-the-scenes videos. However, some features are hidden and provide settings that can streamline or improve your experience.

Here are some of the Disney+ features and settings you are missing out on, partially because they aren't the most obvious settings on the platform. These entries are listed in no particular order, and with any luck, Disney won't make this article outdated by adding (or removing) useful-yet-hidden features in the near future.

While the size, resolution, and color accuracy of television sets have improved significantly, such advances come at a cost. Modern TVs lack many buttons, relegating most of their functions to remote controls, which likewise have been shedding their extra buttons in favor of features such as voice control. However, voice recognition accuracy is hit and miss, so why not replace it with the precision of a computer?

If you like to watch Disney+ on a PC, odds are you use a mouse and keyboard to navigate the various menus and type in the titles of programs. You can also use keyboards with your smart TVs and take advantage of shortcuts. For instance, you can use the left and right arrow keys to rewind and fast forward, and the "S" key skips intros and recaps from your content.

To be fair, this feature is less a Disney+ setting and more an advantage of modern TV technology. You only need to connect a physical keyboard to your smart TV, and you're good to go. You don't even need the best keyboards tailored specifically for smart TVs; any compatible keyboard that connects to your TV via Bluetooth will work. And if it doesn't, connect a keyboard via a dongle or link it to a streaming device like the Nvidia Shield and use that as a bridge between Disney+ and your keyboard.

Most people associate Disney with family-friendly content, and you can find plenty of movies and shows on Disney+ to watch with your children. You've got modern classics such as "Bluey," but you can also introduce them to shows you grew up with, like "Dinosaurs." Disney+ also has plenty of features that let your kids watch shows on their own before you're ready to remove their training wheels.

Disney+ has numerous parental controls to prevent your kids from watching shows that aren't age appropriate. For example, you can set the content rating of your kid's account to make sure they can't watch movies such as "Scream" (yes, you can stream that movie on Disney+). Simply:

1. Navigate to the profiles or hover your mouse over a profile icon on a computer.
2. Select "Edit Profiles."
3. Click on the profile you want to change.
4. Select "Parental Controls."
5. Enter your password.
6. Select the content rating you want, then click "Save."
7. Return to the "Edit Profiles" page, and select "Done."

Parental controls don't just end there. In this menu, you can toggle "Allow titles without ratings like live sports, news, and more" to prevent children from watching unrated material. Alternatively, toggle "Junior Mode" to restrict their library without the need to set age content ratings, as well as to streamline the interface. You can also toggle "Kid-Proof Exit" (after entering your password again) which requires juniors to first complete an exit challenge before exiting the profile to ensure your kids can't easily circumvent the age gate.

Many people buy the best devices they can afford so they can experience the highest-quality audio and video. However, a setup is only half the equation; you need to ensure streaming platforms such as Disney+ can take advantage of their full potential.

Disney+ is pretty good at defaulting to the highest-quality audio your device can provide, and the same is true for video settings. Normally, you don't need to do anything, but you should visit your TV's settings menu and ensure features such as 5.1 surround sound and Dolby Atmos are active. But let's say you are watching your shows on the go and want your battery to last as long as possible. Then you will want to change data usage settings:

1. Open the Disney+ app.
2. Tap on your profile icon and select "App Settings."
3. Select "Cellular Data Usage."
4. Choose the option that uses the least amount of data.

The video and audio won't be as crisp, but they won't require as much battery power or mobile data to stream. 

Thanks to the IMAX Enhanced mode on Disney+, you can watch certain content shot on IMAX cameras in an expanded aspect ratio. While some films will start playing in IMAX's expanded aspect ratio for the full runtime, others will swap between the standard format and IMAX during certain sequences. You don't need to do anything special to activate this setting, as it is enabled by default. However, if you are the minority that finds the abrupt switching between different aspect ratios annoying, here's how you can disable the feature:

1. Open the "Movies" tab.
2. Select the "Imax Enhanced" filter.
3. Click on the movie you want to watch.
4. Click on "Versions."
5. Select the Widescreen version instead of the one with "IMAX Enhanced" in the title.

Disney+ is full of so many excellent shows and movies that it's hard to talk yourself out of a binge-watch session. I can think of worse ways to spend my Saturday than watching every episode of "Andor." And you don't even need to lift a finger — the app will autoplay the next episode for you. Unless you find that feature annoying, that is.

Let's be blunt: Autoplay is more trouble than it's worth. The feature just starts the next episode of a show way too quickly. Sure, you can pause whenever you like, but what if you are done for the day? You don't have to do anything; just let the credits roll and turn off the TV at your convenience. But with autoplay, you need to quickly pick up the remote to prevent it from continuing a show you don't want to continue (for the day). And some people report that when you watch a movie, Disney+ will autoplay another film.

If you want to turn off this annoying feature, you can only do it on a per-profile basis:

1. Navigate to the profiles or hover your mouse over a profile icon on a computer.
2. Select "Edit Profiles."
3. Click on the profile you want to change.
4. Toggle "Autoplay" so it is off.
5. Select "Done."

While autoplay is potentially annoying, deactivating it serves another purpose: So long as your kid doesn't have the remote, they won't spend all their time in front of the TV. This could be a crucial setting if they promised to finish their homework or complete some chores after one episode.

If you have a Disney+ subscription, you probably get it through the Disney+/Hulu/HBO bundle. And if you don't, you should since you can save a ton of money with that streaming bundle. Yes, Disney owns Hulu (as well as ABC, ESPN, and National Geographic), and thanks to this ownership, you don't necessarily need different apps to enjoy the library.

When you open the Disney+ app or visit the website, you should see several icons near the top, including "For you" and the Disney+ logo. If you are subscribed to the bundle, you should also see the Hulu logo just to the right of the Disney+ one. Simply click or tap on it, and the platform will start recommending shows and movies you normally can't get on Disney+, all without visiting Hulu. Less hidden in the traditional sense and more hiding in plain sight, but it's still easy to forget this setting exists.

With this feature, you can store your backlog in one overarching watchlist, but don't get too comfortable. As previously stated, you need the bundle to watch Hulu shows on the Disney+ app — no bundle, no "Only Murders in the Building." Plus, while most Hulu shows and movies are available through Disney+, some content is still exclusive to Hulu's app and site. If you want to watch Hulu+ Live TV and Hulu Add-ons, you will need to venture outside of Disney+ and purchase the ability to watch them. Also, you might still see ads on Hulu shows, depending on your subscription.