YouTube has a viewing resolution of up to 8K (1680p), but 1080p Full HD is likely to be the most popular. In addition, the majority of smartphones have a 1080p display, thus playing a 1440p/2160p video on YouTube makes little sense. As a result, we’re pleased that YouTube has added a better version of 1080p Full HD to its videos.
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Also read: 4K vs 8K Resolution: What Are the Differences? (Especially on TV)
What Is 1080p Premium on YouTube?
To put it simply, YouTube is giving an enhanced version of 1080p on its service. The enhancement takes the form of a higher bitrate. You may be wondering what a bitrate on video is and what it is used for.
Although the resolution of a video means the number of pixels available in a frame of a video, other elements play an important influence on the video quality. One of them is referred to as a bitrate. And the bitrate is known as the number of bits transferred between source and destination per second. For a video, it is the total amount of video data (in bits) that YouTube transmits to you in a second.
What Are the YouTube 1080p Premium Requirements?
Increased data transfer speeds entail higher costs for YouTube. So, YouTube expects you to pay for this feature. As a result, this feature is only available to YouTube Premium users.
Moreover, the feature is currently called “experiment” and is only available in the iPhone’s YouTube app. Still, YouTube has said that the feature will be available on the web version of YouTube soon, but there is no word on when it will be available for Android.
Therefore, you’ll need an iPhone and a YouTube Premium Subscription to access the 1080p Premium feature.
How to Enable 1080p Premium on YouTube Using an iPhone?
You don’t need to do anything new to enable 1080p Premium video quality on YouTube. It appears in the same quality options menu as the other resolutions. But it is not yet available on all videos and only a few videos have 1080p Premium resolution. The only method to know if a video supports it is to check the video quality settings.
Here’s how to go about it:
Step 1: Launch the YouTube app on your iPhone.
Step 2: Play the video on which you want to test the feature.
Step 3: Click on the video and tap the Settings icon, then select Quality.
Step 4: Click on Advanced.
Step 5: Select the 1080p Premium (Enhanced bitrate) option.
Now, this video will play on the 1080p Full HD resolution with an enhanced bitrate. If the quality remains unchanged, simply reload the video and repeat the preceding steps.
Conclusion
While the feature, 1080p Premium on YouTube, appears to be in beta, we appreciate YouTube’s intentions behind it. And the feature seems to be a push for customers to purchase the Premium subscription. Therefore, if you appreciate experimental features and would like to enjoy a better watching experience, think about getting one.