OptiLearn

Travel a lot? Spotty WiFi? Limited mobile data? The OptiLearn mobile app lets you download individual video and PDF lessons to your phone so you can keep learning offline. Downloads work in the background and are encrypted on disk — your downloaded content is private to you and tied to your account.

Downloading a lesson

Open any video or PDF lesson and tap the download icon in the player toolbar (next to the speed and CC buttons). The download starts immediately and shows a progress ring on the icon.

You can navigate away while it downloads — the download continues in the background. You'll get a small notification when it finishes.

The download icon shows one of three states:

Down arrow (idle) — not downloaded; tap to start
Spinning ring — downloading; tap to cancel
Filled check — downloaded and ready to watch offline; tap to delete

Where downloads live

Tap Me → Downloads to see every lesson you've downloaded, grouped by course. Each tile shows:

Lesson title
Course name
File size on disk
Date downloaded
A trash icon to delete it

Tap any tile to play it without going through the course view. Useful when you know exactly which lesson you want.

Settings

Tap Me → Downloads → Settings for three controls:

WiFi-only downloads (default: on) — downloads pause when you're on mobile data and resume when you're back on WiFi. Turn this off if you want to download anywhere — but watch your data plan.
Auto-delete after 7 days (default: off) — automatically removes downloads you haven't watched in a week. Helps keep storage tidy if you download a lot.
Delete on unenroll (default: on) — when you leave a course, downloaded lessons from that course are removed too. Turn this off if you want to keep downloads after unenrolling.

Storage cap

The app has a built-in cap of 2 GB for downloaded content. When you're approaching the cap, the app warns you and suggests deleting older downloads first. If you hit the cap, new downloads fail with a clear "out of space" message.

The 2 GB is separate from the app's own install size — it's just the downloaded media.

Watching offline

When your phone is offline (no WiFi, no mobile data), the app shows an offline banner at the top of the screen. You can still:

Open the Me → Downloads tab and play any downloaded lesson
Browse the lesson list of any course you've downloaded from
Read your notes and bookmarks

You can't:

Download new content (need a connection)
Take quizzes or submit assignments (these need to sync)
Browse the catalogue
Receive new notifications

When you come back online, the app reconnects automatically and syncs everything — no action needed.

Note

Watching a downloaded video doesn't reset its "watched" status on the server until you're online again. Once you reconnect, the app uploads your progress and you'll see the green check appear on the lesson.

Tips

Download before a flight or train. A 2-hour lecture is about 300-500 MB depending on quality.
Use WiFi-only mode unless you have unlimited data. Accidentally downloading a 1 GB video on cellular is painful.
Turn on auto-delete if your phone storage is tight. You rarely need to keep a downloaded lesson around after you've watched it.
Delete downloads when you finish a course. Keep the 2 GB cap free for new content.
Downloaded lessons stay private. They're encrypted on disk and only playable inside the OptiLearn app while you're signed in to your account.

What can't be downloaded

Live sessions — they're, well, live
Quizzes and assignments — these need a server connection to submit
Embedded content (Google Slides, Canva) — these come from third-party services
SCORM packages — these run their own player and need a connection
YouTube and Vimeo videos — third-party hosting; use YouTube/Vimeo's own offline features if available

Student features — full app walkthrough
Installing the mobile app — how to get the app

Offline downloads