Transcoding is a key to any video streaming workflow. Through transcoding, you can encode a digital file or files into a set of files that can meet your need. It is very significant to ensure that your content is capable of viewing on different types of devices. In this article, we will discover video transcoding and how it can improve streaming through live transcoding.
What is video transcoding?
The process of creating a video into different types of versions is called video transcoding. It allows you to deliver high-quality videos with fast internet speed. With slower internet, it will provide lower resolution of videos to the viewers. It is done to decrease latency and buffering for your viewers.
Some Video files consume huge space in memory and a lot of bandwidth during transmission. That is why transcoding is necessary to make these large files into ideal size. Here technology is used to address the large file, which is called “codec.” The purpose of this codec is to compress large files. It also removes the extraneous data from your video to reduce the size of the video file but keeps the quality of the video as high as possible.
A master file is a video you record initially. It is the best quality video that exists. After video transcoding, it becomes a lower bitrate copy.
Which transcoding settings are standard?
Choosing the correct codec, bitrate, file size, and resolution is most important to ensure the possible best quality of your video allowed by your viewers’ device and bandwidth.
The most common formats of video transcoding are-
- Audio codec: AAC
- Video Codec: H.264
- File format: MP4
- Resolution: 240p, 480p, 720p, 1080p
Why is transcoding important for video streaming?
If you want to reach more viewers, transcoding is very important. If you’re going to broadcast a live video using a camera and encoder, you have to compress the content with an encoder and select the H.264 codec at 1080p.
The main goal is to deliver your video perfectly to the viewers. If you want to stream or show a video like in a close circuit camera, you may face some problems. The first problem for your viewers is that they will not watch the video without enough bandwidth. The video players will buffer and lag constantly. Without a video transcoder, you will lose the views of mobile, tablets, TV devices, and the slower data connection.
Transcoding software can create time-aligned streams, different bit rates, and frame sizes for other streams, simultaneously converting the codecs for reaching additional viewers. As these will make the video stream internet-friendly and can be packaged into different stream formats, those formats are allowed to play on any screen in the world.
One of the most important areas of using transcoder is the use of IP (internet protocol) cameras. IP cameras are used for traffic or surveillance purposes. Adaptive bitrate and codec allow the broadcasts to be viewed by a large number of masses even without interruption.
How does YouTube use transcoding during our visit?
YouTube is one of the largest providers of video which are generated by its users. It receives 300+ hours of uploads in one minute. The mechanism of youtube can transcode any video in 5+ qualities and 5+ different formats. YouTube starts encoding and then transcoding as soon as the original video is uploaded. It transcodes the uploaded content in almost 20 formats. As it requires time, sometimes newly uploaded videos are only available in low-resolution videos until it is transcoded into high-resolution videos.
