The Bandwidth Consumption Vector
As you scroll through the Apple App Store on your iPhone, the interface is designed to be highly dynamic. By default, any application listing that features a promotional video will automatically begin playing that video the moment it appears on your screen. If you are browsing on a metered cellular connection, these high-definition promotional videos can rapidly consume your monthly data allowance. Furthermore, the constant motion can be visually distracting when you are simply trying to read the text description of an application.
How to Disable Auto-Play Videos
You can instruct iOS to completely disable video playback within the App Store, replacing the videos with static placeholder images until you manually tap them.
1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. Scroll down the main list until you find the App Store settings menu and tap on it.
3. Scroll down to the section labelled Video Autoplay.
4. Tap on Video Autoplay.
5. You will be presented with three options: On, Wi-Fi Only, and Off. Tap Off to completely eradicate the feature.
6. Alternatively, if you only want to protect your cellular data but enjoy the videos at home, select Wi-Fi Only.
The next time you open the App Store, you can scroll freely without unexpected videos consuming your bandwidth or interrupting your search experience.