Tips & Tricks

H265 Codec: The Future of Video Streaming

2 min read
What is H265

H.265 is the future of video streaming. It offers significantly improved compression over older codecs, resulting in higher-quality video at lower bitrates. This makes it ideal for streaming high-resolution videos over the internet, where bandwidth is often limited. With H265, you can enjoy smooth, high-quality videos without sacrificing performance. Significant streaming platforms are already using this video compression standard, and its adoption will only continue to grow.

In this blog post, we’ll learn in-depth about the H265 video codec and how it’s changing the video streaming landscape. Let’s get started!

What is h265?

H265, also known as High-Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) and MPEG-H Part 2, is a video compression standard that offers significantly improved compression over older video codecs like H264. Higher-quality video files can be streamed at lower bitrates without sacrificing performance.

HEVC was developed to double the data compression efficiency of the H.264 standard while maintaining the same quality level with small file size. This codec is part of the evolution from MPEG codecs and is used by many video professionals. HEVC offers increased resolutions or frame rates, but often at the expense of color fidelity and a file that is difficult to manipulate through the edit or grade. However, the codec is becoming more popular as devices and software become more HEVC-compatible.

H265 Supported Operating Systems (OS):

  • Microsoft Windows (Required Add-on)
  • macOS
  • BSD/Linux (Required Add-on)
  • Android OS
  • iOS

Advantages of using the H265 codec

As more and more devices and software become compatible with HEVC, the codec is becoming increasingly popular. HEVC offers a great combination of high-quality video and small file size. For many video professionals, the ‘bang for buck’ in file size and perceived image quality is too good to pass up. Even though there may be some drawbacks, such as decreased color fidelity or a more difficult file to edit or grade, the benefits of using HEVC files far outweigh the negatives.

Some advantages of using the H265 codec include:

  • Higher video quality at lower bitrates
  • Smooth, high-quality videos without sacrificing performance
  • Compatible with many devices and software (Expanding Compatibility)
  • Great combination of high-quality video and small file size

If you want to stream high-quality video without sacrificing performance, H265 is your codec. This robust compression standard offers many benefits that make it ideal for streaming high-resolution videos over the internet. With more devices and software becoming compatible with the HEVC format, its popularity will only grow.

Is H.265 better than H.264?

Regarding video compression, the most popular codecs are H.264 and H.265. But which one is better? Both codecs offer excellent quality at low bitrates, but there are some critical differences between them. H.264 is more widely compatible and has been around for longer, while H.265 offers better compression efficiency and quality. Regarding specific use cases, H.264 is often a better choice for real-time applications such as streaming video. At the same time, H.265 is better suited for encoding high-resolution video or video that will be watched on a high-resolution screen. The best codec for a particular application depends on the user’s specific needs. H264 is considered the present of video streaming, while H265 is the future.

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