WhatsApp HD Video Sharing Feature Rolls Out to Users on Android: How it Works

WhatsApp now supports sending videos at 720p resolution instead of compressing them to 480p.

Written by David Delima, Edited by Siddharth Suvarna | Updated: 25 August 2023 13:28 IST

WhatsApp HD Video Sharing Feature Rolls Out to Users on Android: How it Works

Photo Credit: Reuters

WhatsApp recently rolled out the ability to share HD photos to all users on the platform

Highlights

WhatsApp previously compressed all videos sent to 480p resolution
Videos can now be sent in "HD" video quality
WhatsApp users must manually choose to send videos at 720p resolution

WhatsApp's HD video sharing feature has begun rolling out to users on Android, days after the Meta-owned messaging platform rolled out support for sending high-resolution images. Until now, WhatsApp would compress all videos sent on the platform, which resulted in recipients seeing them in lower resolution. While this offered obvious benefits in terms of faster file transmission as well as lower data and storage use, the messaging app will now let users choose to send specific videos in high resolution.

With the WhatsApp for Android 2.23.17.74 update that began rolling out to users on Thursday, the app now displays an HD icon at the top of the screen when selecting a video to share with contacts. When this is toggled, WhatsApp will share videos in 720p resolution instead of the standard — and default — 480p resolution.

The feature is available on Gadgets 360 staff members' phones after updating to the latest version of WhatsApp for Android. There's currently no word on when the feature will roll out to users on the stable version of WhatsApp for iOS, where it is currently in beta testing.

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It is worth noting that users will need to toggle the option to send a video in higher resolution every time. The app will send videos in "standard" resolution — 480p is practically considered low resolution in 2023 when smartphones have full-HD and quad-HD displays — by default. This was presumably done to ensure that media sent and received on WhatsApp doesn't eventually take up too much space on a user's smartphone.

If you want to send a high-resolution video on WhatsApp, you can follow these steps after updating to the latest version of WhatsApp for Android. Keep in mind that the feature might not be available for all users.

How to send HD videos on WhatsApp

Open a chat on WhatsApp and tap on the attachment icon > Gallery.
Locate the video you want to send and tap on it to see a preview.
Look for the HD icon at the top of the screen, to the left of the sticker, text, and drawing icons.
Select HD quality and note the increased file size, then tap on Done.
After making any changes or edits to the video, tap the send button in the bottom right corner.

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Further reading: WhatsApp, WhatsApp HD video, WhatsApp HD video sharing, WhatsApp features, WhatsApp for Android

David Delima

Email David Delima

As a writer on technology with Gadgets 360, David Delima is interested in open-source technology, cybersecurity, consumer privacy, and loves to read and write about how the Internet works. David can be contacted via email at DavidD@ndtv.com, on Twitter at @DxDavey, and Mastodon at mstdn.social/@delima. More