Video File and Network Comparison

Introduction

Understanding both the current network bitrate capability and the bitrate of your video stream is key to delivering smooth video.

Background

There are various measurements to gauge the video data in order to help improve delivery of streaming media content. One measurement is bit rate.

Bitrate is the number of bits per second (bps) at which a video stream is delivered. For adaptive bit rate (ABR), the bitrate will change based on a request from the client player on a user's device.

Knowing the bitrate of your video stream, and the bit rate of the network, can help you balance the quality of the video.

A higher average bitrate means a higher quality image (for a given screen resolution). The bitrate indicates how many bits of video (or information in general) can be transmitted over a specific period of time.

The Issue

It is a good idea to deliver video at an optimal bitrate within the capability of the device and the network, while factoring in all the associated overhead.

In order to do this, it is important that the bitrate or bandwidth of the network connection is greater than the bitrate of the streaming media file.

Best Practice Recommendation

The Best Practice Recommendation is to stream video as smoothly as possible, based on the current network conditions.

The Video Optimizer compares the bandwidth of the network with the bitrate of the video stream. This test can help you make sure the network connection is greater than the bitrate of the streaming media file.

Video and other types of rich media are on the rise in mobile apps and in the future we plan on offering more guidance on streaming and other video technology in our Mobile Development Best Practices recommendations.