For a few days now, some of you may have noticed something different on YouTube. A video playing at 720p no longer shows the HD marker. That only appears for content that’s 1080p to 1440p. This marks the end of the 720p resolution being viewed as High Definition.
It is important to note that some people might have seen this shift a few months ago. While for some, the change is only taking effect now. This comes some weeks after Google changed the resolution selector in the app, now preferring a more complex method for users to select the resolution they want their video to play.
With the shift from 720p to 1080p, it is now clear that companies shipping 720p displays on smartphones need to rethink their idea on what HD really is.
Data has gotten cheaper, and internet speeds are much faster. Playing a 1080p video isn’t hard (or near impossible as it were years ago). It therefore makes sense for YouTube to shift the ideology on what HD really is – when we are in a world where streaming in 1440p or in 4K is almost the norm for a significant size of the population.
Have you noticed this shift? If so, when? Also: what are your thoughts. What video resolution do you normally use?
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