View Hi-def videos on YouTube soon

By Jimmy Downs

If you have ever played a video on youtube.com, chances are good that you are not happy with your viewing experience. The image quality isn't that great.

That may change very soon. Rumor has it that the site has decided to upgrade its video-sharing technology to support 1080p hi-def videos.

Right now no matter what format you use for your video, viewers can only play and view it at the maximum of 780p, according to ITProPortal.com.

The upgrading will have to overcome some technical issues. For one thing, HD videos tends to be larger in size. This means that the company will need to invest more in infrastructure so that it can store and deliver them.

That should not be a problem. Youtube is owned by Google Inc, the search engine king that has tons of cash at its disposal.

Still, users may wonder if the company would put a strict limit on the size of a video with high resolution. But the company said the limit remains the same: a maximum of 10 minutes.

Those who only appreciate high end viewing experience may not have to wait to play hi-def videos on the site. They can add a little something at the end of a YouTube URL to play a HD version of the same video, according to cybernetnews.com.

What needs to be added at the URL end is &fmt=6, according to the site. That is, for a URL address like http://youtube.com/watch?v=CQzUsTFqtW0, you would have to use http://youtube.com/watch?v=CQzUsTFqtW0&fmt=6

Alternatively, viewers can add &fmt=18 to view the HD videos. But there is no guarantee because not all videos on the video-sharing website are coded in high resolution.

editing by Sheilah Downey