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Using youtube/video client vs flash

R

Ronin12

Newbie
Hi all! My first thread here!

I'm new to android and have a, maybe, silly question.

I've been using the iphone for awhile and I'm interested in trying out android. My phone of interest is the nexus s.

Many of the sites I visit on my iphone will give me the ability to view video in mobile format, using the youtube client or video client.

On android, it runs on flash, which isnt optimized for mobile. Im glad flash is available, but I rather have the os bounce me to a client and give me a mobile version that loads faster. Is this possible?

for example, sometimes I check out gametrailers.com. On the iphone, the site recognizes Im browsing on a iphone and gives me the "click to view on iphone" option which is faster, no ads, and looks great. I tried the same site on android and it loads the flash version which is slower and not as smooth.

Does android have the ability to run video from web sites in a mobile friendly version?

Thanks.
 
Ok, Welcome to the forums!

Next - please don't bump threads without at least a full day passing - almost without fail, all threads here get a response.

Third - your question:

On android, it runs on flash, which isnt optimized for mobile. Im glad flash is available, but I rather have the os bounce me to a client and give me a mobile version that loads faster. Is this possible?

for example, sometimes I check out gametrailers.com. On the iphone, the site recognizes Im browsing on a iphone and gives me the "click to view on iphone" option which is faster, no ads, and looks great. I tried the same site on android and it loads the flash version which is slower and not as smooth.

Does android have the ability to run video from web sites in a mobile friendly version?
Click to expand...
Well - working backwards - Android is highly configurable.

One popular configuration is to set the web browser to do on-demand plug-ins - meaning Flash video is just a placeholder until clicked - so - fast as the no-Flash plug-in, but still the Flash features are a tap away.

The iPhone is indeed popularly recognized by many websites - I've seen that in standard AJAX 3rd-party website editing s/w - web developers tend to get a number of features like that automagically.

Because they need to - unlike Android 2.2 and above that has full Flash - the iPhone does not.

Basically, you can configure your Android browser to be sleek, trim and strictly mobile - or you make websites believe you're running a Mac with Safari and full Flash support (my normal configuration).

The Nexus S is a great phone. Personally, I'm just kinda on the side that says to try a good representative of each of the big three Android makers: Samsung (like the NS), Motorola, and HTC.

Best to see features really important to you in action before finalizing a phone selection. With Android, each maker does use different processors, has some different software optimizations and so forth - so if you're new to Android, best to get a feel for your choices rather than believe spec sheets.

And then decide if what you like or dislike is specific to a particular phone or is indeed a part of Android's present characteristics.

The choices are there for a great reason - our personal needs all vary, and no one's invented the perfect phone yet.

Flash 10.2 is coming soon -

Adobe says Flash 10.2 coming to handsets soon, offers roundabout confirmation of Honeycomb for smartphones -- Engadget

Don't be too scared of rumors that Honeycomb isn't on its way to phones soon, either -
HTC Revolver headed to AT&T as a Honeycomb Smartphone? | Android Phone Fans

Let me know if this is in the neighborhood of answering your questions properly - and again, welcome to the forums, welcome to Android!
 
holy cow! awesome post! Thanks for taking the time to write that.

I work for best buy mobile and I play with all the cellphones on a daily basis. Nexus s is my favorite, so Im pretty sure that is the phone for me. Especially considering the talk of "ice cream" merging honeycomb with the mobile os.

Anyways, I am aware of the plugin feature that can be put to "on demand". However, even if the video is a embedded youtube video, it plays it in flash, not through the youtube client. It works fine, but it takes longer to load, uses more battery, and you keep seeing the, "not optimized for mobile" notification. I was wondering why it just doesn't bounce me to the youtube client and back? Seems to be more efficient and gives an overall better experience.

Maybe flash 10.2 is the answer?
 
Oh - you're simply missing a step.

When the Flash vid starts playing in the browser - give it a medium-length kinda press - a gray rectangle will appear in the upper left corner - that - or the traditional YouTube glyph in the video's lower-right corner to go to full screen: tapping either one launches the standalone, full-screen client.
 
Just noticed this morning - had a vid that wasn't optimized for mobile. Tapped the full-screen glyph, got a flash player in portrait only. When back to the web page, tapped the vid while running (to go source) - got a choice of internet or youtube. Second one launched the YouTube client, full-screen landscape.

Odd, but there it is.
 
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