Connect with us

Technologies

The Next Time You Stream Hulu, Try These 8 Helpful Tricks

These tips can help make your experience easier — and better.

Among the major streaming services like Netflix, Max and Disney Plus, Hulu has a strong position. And a subscription comes with a few advantages.

You can stream live news channels on any plan or host a remote watch party with the built-in platform. You can also take your subscription to the next level: In addition to Hulu’s basic $8 tier, you can pay more to remove ads or step up to Hulu Plus Live TV, which comes with unlimited DVR and access to Disney Plus and ESPN Plus

But what about Hulu’s features? Though the platform isn’t as intuitive to use as I’d like, I’ve found plenty of ways to enhance the viewing experience. I’m sorry to say that Hulu lacks secret codes that unlock genre menus and other categories of content like Netflix. But with these tricks, you can still add a little razzle dazzle to your streaming flow. 

how-to-tech-tips-logo-badge.png how-to-tech-tips-logo-badge.png

One thing before we dive in: I learned the hard way that Hulu’s functions don’t work the same across all devices. That inconsistency may be frustrating, but you can check which supported devices work best with these tips by visiting Hulu’s help center.

Read more: Disney Plus and Hulu Content Will Stream in One App Later This Year

Use widgets for your mobile phone

Are you accustomed to watching the Hulu app on your phone? Android and iPhone users can switch to a customized Hulu widget that offers a one-click ride to content you were already watching or suggestions for new titles.

iOS users can tap and hold an empty space on their screens and when the add sign pops up, type in Hulu. You’ll be prompted to choose one of two widgets: «Jump Back In» or «Discover.»

If you have an Android phone, tap an empty spot on your screen and then click the widgets icon. Search for Hulu in the search bar and then click which widget you want to use. You’ll have the option to pick from «Keep Watching» or new content.

Add and remove channels in your lineup

This tip applies to live TV and Hulu basic subscribers. You know how you select your favorite networks when you first set up your Hulu profile? Well, that doesn’t have to be set in stone. If you want to add a channel to your viewing lineup, you’ll need to store your preferred networks in the «My Stuff» tab in Hulu.

From the main screen, find the TV tab and scroll down to find the «All TV Networks» row. Click on the channel that has a constant stream of content you want to watch. For example, if you like ABC’s shows, select its icon and in the upper corner, click «Add to My Stuff.» You’ll now see ABC content in your Hulu main page rotation. Repeat the process for other networks. When you navigate to the My Stuff tab, and hit Networks, you’ll see a list of all the channels you’ve added. Fast-track yourself to your favorite shows or movies by clicking on the channel’s icon. 

Comedy Central offerings in Hulu Comedy Central offerings in Hulu

Add specific channels to your main Hulu lineup.

Screenshot by Kourtnee Jackson/CNET

Live TV subscribers follow a different set of steps. Open up the Hulu app and click on Hubs. Scroll down to the A-Z section to select the network channels you want, and then tap Add to My Stuff, or choose them from one of the other rows for entertainment, sports, etc. To verify that they’re part of your channel lineup, hit the Live tab and click on My Channels.

To remove any of these networks from your main Hulu page, simply find the network icon in My Stuff and click remove.

Customize your subtitles

Like Netflix, Hulu gives you the ability to tailor subtitles on the screen. You can alter the font, background and window appearance for your programming. Open the app on your TV and navigate to your profile icon. Click Settings and open the Subtitles and Captions menu. You can change the font color, opacity and shadowing, and make the same adjustments to your background and window.

This formatting process will only work on supported devices that run the latest version of Hulu. Certain models for Roku, Android TV, Samsung TVs and Apple TV (pre-fourth generation) may not have this function.  

However, if you’re watching from a web browser, you can toggle the subtitle font settings. While a video is streaming, click the gear icon. Choose Subtitles. In the subtitles menu, tap Settings, and a box will open that allows you to choose font type, color, size and opacity. Click Done after you’ve made your selections.

Save your eyes with Night Mode

For those who watch Hulu late at night on a laptop, there’s a feature that will make your ophthalmologist happy: Night Mode. It changes your screen from a light, white background to a dark one to reduce blue light strain on the eyes.

To enable it, hover the cursor over your profile until you see the dropdown menu. Toggle Night Mode to the on or off position. Though this option is only available on computers, you can use the cast feature to stream Hulu from your laptop to Chromecast or your smart TV.

Hulu screen with night mode selection Hulu screen with night mode selection

Lower blue light exposure with Hulu’s night mode.

Screenshot by Kourtnee Jackson/CNET

Pause your subscription

Heading out on a trip? Need a break from one of your monthly bills? You can temporarily put Hulu on ice for up to 12 weeks. Go to your account page and find your subscription column. Click Pause on the Pause Your Subscription bar and choose how long you want to stop Hulu. 

You won’t be billed during this time but note that the freeze kicks in on the first day of your next billing cycle. Additionally, know that if you’ve bundled Disney Plus and/or ESPN Plus with your Hulu subscription, access to those apps will be on pause, too.

Unless you restart your subscription manually, your account will automatically be reactivated on the date your pause expires. That will become your new billing date.

Disable autoplay

If you use Netflix regularly, then you’re probably accustomed to its autoplay feature that rolls into the next episode or preview. Hulu does the same thing, and you’re able to turn it on or off.

For TV and mobile devices, click on your profile icon and then select Settings. Toggle Autoplay to off for videos or previews. If you’re streaming Hulu on a web browser, click the gear icon during playback to open up Settings. Toggle Autoplay to off.

Clean up your watch history

Did you finish binge-watching your way through every season of a few shows? What about that horror movie spree from last Halloween? If you want to rewatch a piece of content from the beginning or have the urge to declutter your watch history, there’s a way to remove what you’ve already seen. 

On your TV, go to a series or movie’s details page. Click the gear icon that says Manage Series. You’ll be asked to confirm whether you want to remove the title from your watch history. Choosing Remove will not only delete it from your history and Keep Watching list, but it will also erase your viewing progress for an entire series or movie. This is handy if you want to watch something all over again. 

Mobile and web users should start on the home page and find the Keep Watching section on Hulu. Locate the title’s thumbnail to open up menu options. Click X or Remove from Watch History and verify your selection. 

Lost remote? Let your phone guide you

If a gremlin hid your TV’s remote control, fear not, you can still watch Hulu on your big screen by using your phone. How? If you have Chromecast or Airplay on your TV,  install the Hulu app on your phone (or other mobile device) cast it. 

Be sure your phone and TV are connected to the same Wi-Fi, and then open the app on your phone. Choose the content you want to watch and tap either the Airplay or Cast icon. Select Chromecast or your smart TV from the menu and enjoy streaming. You can control playback functions with your phone.

For more, check out CNET’s review of Hulu and Hulu Plus Live TV. You can also take a look at our list of the best streaming services for 2022. Plus, here’s how Netflix and Hulu compare

2023’s Best TV and Streaming Shows You Can’t Miss on Netflix, HBO, Disney Plus and More

See all photos

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for June 8, #728

Here are some hints and the answers for Connections for June 8, #728.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.


Today’s NYT Connections puzzle could be tricky. The purple category is one of those «sounds like» groups, that can be really tough to figure out. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group, to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Keep at it.

Green group hint: Think Wall Street animals.

Blue group hint: Online encyclopedia subheads.

Purple group hint: $$$.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Persist.

Green group: Animal metaphors in economics.

Blue group: Sidebar info on a person’s Wikipedia page.

Purple group: Homophones of slang for money.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is persist. The four answers are hold, last, stand and stay.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is animal metaphors in economics. The four answers are bear, bull, dove and hawk.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is sidebar info on a person’s Wikipedia page. The four answers are born, education, occupation and spouse.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is homophones of slang for money. The four answers are bred, cache, doe and lute.

Continue Reading

Technologies

Today’s Wordle Hints, Answer and Help for June 8, #1450

Here are hints and the answer for today’s Wordle No. 1,450 for June 8.

Looking for the most recent Wordle answer? Click here for today’s Wordle hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.


Today’s Wordle puzzle isn’t too tough, especially if your first guesses are heavy on vowels. If you need a new starter word, check out our list of which letters show up the most in English words. If you need hints and the answer, read on.

Today’s Wordle hints

Before we show you today’s Wordle answer, we’ll give you some hints. If you don’t want a spoiler, look away now.

Wordle hint No. 1: Repeats

Today’s Wordle answer has one repeated letter.

Wordle hint No. 2: Vowels

There are two vowels in today’s Wordle answer, but one is the repeated letter, so you’ll see it twice.

Wordle hint No. 3: First letter

Today’s Wordle answer begins with L.

Wordle hint No. 4: Ending

Today’s Wordle answer ends with a vowel.

Wordle hint No. 5: Meaning

Today’s Wordle answer refers to a contract where someone is given the right to use something for a specific time and payment.

TODAY’S WORDLE ANSWER

Today’s Wordle answer is LEASE.

Yesterday’s Wordle answer

Yesterday’s Wordle answer, June 7, No. 1449 was REUSE.

Recent Wordle answers

June 3, No. 1445: ADMIN

June 4, No. 1446: CEASE

June 5, No. 1447: DATUM

June 6, No. 1448: EDIFY

Continue Reading

Technologies

Resident Evil Requiem Revealed, but Where’s Leon Kennedy?

The Resident Evil 9 trailer showed off a new character, but not the much-rumored return of Leon.

After a fake-out earlier in Summer Game Fest on Friday, Resident Evil Requiem, or Resident Evil 9, was shown for the first time. 

The new title is the first mainline entry since Capcom released Resident Evil Village in 2021, and is rumored to feature series stalwart Leon Kennedy. In the trailer, the only person we saw was a character named Grace Ashcroft, who works for the FBI and appears to have ties to Raccoon City.

For the most hardcore Resident Evil fans, the name Ashcroft will ring a bell. Alyssa Ashcroft was one of the survivors of the online-only title, Resident Evil Outbreak for the PS2. Alyssa was a journalist who was trapped in Raccoon City during the events of Resident Evil 2, and she, along with other survivors, had to escape the city before it was destroyed.

Grace is Alyssa’s daughter, and in the trailer, she is going to visit the Remwood Hotel, where Alyssa was murdered. Later in the trailer, images from what appears to be the remnants of a destroyed Raccoon City are shown — including the police department from RE2 — so it appears Resident Evil 9 will return to where the series started. 

Leon’s (rumored) return is a big deal for the series, which has made some of its best games with him in the starring role. He first showed up as a rookie cop in Resident Evil 2, which built on the original game’s success with more story and improved monsters and level design.

He showed up again in Resident Evil 4, which took the series in a new direction by introducing an over-the-shoulder perspective, instead of the usual static camera angles and tank controls. Leon was also one of several playable protagonists in Resident Evil 6, a game that seemed to forget about its survival horror roots. We mostly don’t talk about that one.

But the 2019 remake of Resident Evil 2 was an excellent return to form, bringing RE4’s gameplay and much better graphics to a fan-favorite entry. The RE4 remake was a similar success.

Resident Evil Requiem is set to drop Feb. 27, 2026, for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series consoles, but we’re hoping to get our hands on it this weekend. If you want to catch up on older Resident Evil games, Capcom is having a sale that includes basically all the games, including Village and the three remakes.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © Verum World Media