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How to: Tweak YouTube embeds for HD playback

Several readers have e-mailed me and asked for instructions on how to take their HD YouTube videos and embed them elsewhere. As I mentioned before, this isn't an officially sanctioned feature, and as such, the embed code you get on these video pages will still yield the lower-quality, non-widescreen clip.

Needless to say, this is completely unacceptable.

The good news is that you only need to make a few changes to the stock embed code get the job done. Here's what to do:

Step 1: Copy this code and paste it to wherever you intend to embed the … Read more

YouTube videos go HD with a simple hack

Wired, with the help of users on the VR-Zone forums, has uncovered a simple way to get high-quality uploaded videos to display in 1280x720--also known as 720p.

YouTube has long been expected to roll out high-definition video playback, and this appears to be the first viable way to do it. The hack in question is similar to the one that was first used to toggle on the "high quality" mode. It is done simply by adding "&fmt=22" to the end of the video URL.

I got it to work without any problems on a video I uploaded … Read more

Microsoft, Akamai team up on high-def video streams

Microsoft and Akamai Technologies are teaming up on high-definition video streaming efforts for PCs, the companies said Tuesday.

Akamai plans to release a beta service, AdaptiveEdge Streaming for Microsoft Silverlight, early next year to select media customers. It will run on Windows Server 2008 with Microsoft's Silverlight media player.

The move comes as broadband increasingly becomes a fixture in homes and as consumer expectations grow for smooth-running video on PCs. The clarity of HD images is also ramping up in consumer interest in video on PCs.

Microsoft will bring its new Web server technology, Internet Information Services 7.0 … Read more

How wireless video works with WHDi

After two years of telling us, wireless HD video systems makers are now showing us how this works in actual products.

A few weeks ago, we brought you a demonstration of how the WirelessHD video standard works, and now competing standard WHDi is up.

Noam Geri, VP of marketing for Amimon, the chip company that's behind the WHDi wireless standard, gives a brief overview in the video below.

WHDi is already in use, just not in the U.S. quite yet. Sharp is selling a wireless video adapter for its Aquos X-series LCD TV in Japan already, and Sony … Read more

CRUTCHFIELD has the Sony BDP-S350 Blu-ray Disc high-definition player for $269.99, after $30 savings, plus free shipping.

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