YouTube Android App Gets 4K HDR Streaming Support

Android users will now be able to see an additional option in YouTube video quality — 2160p (4K) HDR.

By Tasneem Akolawala | Updated: 20 February 2021 16:35 IST

YouTube Android App Gets 4K HDR Streaming Support

YouTube earlier supported video streaming at max 1440p resolution

Highlights

The rollout for 4K HDR support on YouTube began a few days ago
If you haven’t got it, check for a pending update on Google Play store
Auto video quality on YouTube is set at 480p60 HDR

YouTube Android app has now gained 4K HDR playback support. 4K support has been available on iOS for a while and now Android users can also watch videos in 4K HDR, provided they are uploaded at that resolution or higher, and support HDR. Up until now, Android users could only watch videos on the YouTube app at a maximum 1440p resolution. This was the case even if their display supported higher resolutions on their phones, and the video was uploaded in 4K. However, that has changed with the latest update for 4K HDR support.

Android users will now be able to see an additional option in video quality — 2160p (4K) HDR. This was first spotted by Android Police and is now showing up on our Samsung Galaxy Note 20 as well. To see if you've got YouTube 4K HDR streaming support on your Android phone, go to any YouTube video that has been uploaded in 4K and click on the three dots menu icon on the top right corner of the video box. Select Quality and you should be able to see 2160p60 HDR as an option among other resolutions. The lowest option is 144p60 HDR.

Our version of the app (16.06.34), updated on February 18, includes this update - if you don't see the feature, check to make sure you're using the latest version on the app. You can see if you have any pending updates in the Google Play store. If you cannot wait to get 2160p60 HDR support on your Android device, you can also download the APK Mirror version of the app, and get the feature right away.

Just a few days ago, YouTube announced a slew of updates to enhance the experience for both creators and viewers on the platform. This includes a new modernised interface for tablets and an update to its video chapters feature. YouTube also announced that it will roll out a TikTok-like YouTube Shorts feature in the US starting this March. The short video feature has so far been under testing in India.

Is Samsung Galaxy S21+ the perfect flagship for most Indians? We discussed this on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details.

Comments

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.