YouTube Adds 720p HD Video

The popular video-sharing site now officially supports HD video, allowing videos uploaded in high-def to be viewed in either format.

The days of YouTube videos that look like they’ve been shot underwater with a broken webcam from 1995 may finally be coming to a close. The popular video-sharing site is going high-def.

Although a limited number of HD videos had appeared on the site before Thursday’s formal announcement on the company’s blog, the broad roll-out of 720p high-definition video will offer many more videos in better quality. Videos available in HD now offer a “View in higher quality” button that will switch to sharper, 1280 x 720 resolution video for users with enough bandwidth.

YouTube also introduced an HD video landing page to locate videos available in the new standard, and added an HD video FAQ for uploaders to understand how to properly add HD video.

In addition to the HD switch, YouTube also introduced new landing pages for news, music and movies, as an easier way to locate topic-specific content.