Choosing the right bitrate for your video
By default, MediaLab transcodes videos at 1 Mbit/s, which is recommended for most cases. If the converted video quality is insufficient, use the Recreate option to select a higher bitrate.
Keep in mind:
- The bitrate of the original file is the maximum quality you can achieve. Uploading a 1 Mbit/s video and recreating it at 5 Mbit/s will not improve quality.
- Higher bitrates produce larger files.
- Higher bitrates increase conversion time.
Common Bitrate Guidelines
| Usage | Bitrate |
|---|---|
| videophone quality (minimum necessary for a consumer-acceptable "talking head" picture) | 16 Kbit/s |
| business-oriented videoconferencing quality | 128 – 384 Kbit/s |
| VCD quality | 1.25 Mbit/s |
| DVD quality | 5 Mbit/s |
| HDTV quality | 8 – 15 Mbit/s |
| HD DVD | 29.4 Mbit/s max |
| Blu-ray Disc | 40 Mbit/s max |