YouTube, the world's largest and most popular video service, now supports HDR content for sharper, more vibrant picture quality.The company announced HDR (High Dynamic Range) support in January, and now it's finally live.HDR videos have higher contrast, wider dynamic range of colors, brighter whites and blacker blacks. "Simply put, HDR unlocks the most spectacular image quality we've ever streamed," a blog post states.
YouTube videos that support HDR will be playable on all 2016 Samsung SUHD and UHD TVs, as well as HDR-compatible TVs with a Chromecast Ultra.An HDR badge will appear when the video is played. There will also be a "shelf of HDR videos on the 4K tab on compatible TVS" according to a YouTube spokesperson. An HDR search filter will come in the future.
To get the HDR ball rolling, YouTube's compiled a playlist of HDR videos for the launch from creators such as MysteryGuitarMan, Abandon Visuals and Jacob + Katie Schwarz.TV makers and content providers like Netflix have been telling everyone for years that HDR is the future. YouTube's finally getting with the program.