By 
As mobile becomes an increasing source of information for people on the go, it becomes an increasing point of focus for information providers. We just saw jQuery announce a tightly knit mobile strategy and now we’re seeing the same with the online video sharing hub known as VIMEO.
I quickly searched VIMEO for “phandroid” and found this Android App review by one of our readers, Chad:
In a press release issued today, VIMEO announced they’ll launch a universal player that will use HTML 5 to automatically detect your device and display their video at optimal settings for that particular device. They’ll also embed a “Watch Later” feature into all their players that seems like a simple, but pretty darn good idea.
YouTube is still king of the mountain when it comes to video, but a handful of boutique video providers with competitive offering and quality services have quickly grown to become realistic challengers. VIMEO is one of them and their Universal Player shows a sense of forward thinking (HTML 5, mobile support, all devices) that tells me this company isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
At Phandroid, we use YouTube to upload our videos for sharing, but many tech-related sites have chosen VIMEO. I personally prefer YouTube because everyone is familiar with it, there is a level of reliability and comfort, and it’s worked great thus far so why switch? That’s the cue for all you VIMEO lovers to chime in!
I like Vimeo because you can – if registered – download any video directly from their website.
Much more comfortable than Youtube…
Vimeo’s pages are less cluttered. It seems more targeted at high-quality video production vs. YouTube’s more populist (TV grabs, cellphone videos) approach.
I like VIMEO because my work doesn’t block it :)
Why Vimeo? Simple. No YouTube 10 (now 15) minute time limit. We can distribute our half hour and one hour programs (or two hour meetings) without chopping them up for YouTube. We applied for a partnership as a non-profit, twice, over the last year and a half to bypass the time limitation. Zero response from YouTube.
As mando referenced, not a whole lot of clutter or crap. Your videos, and only your videos, are promoted when someone pulls up your link. We’ve been using it for almost two years for our organization, and it’s been fantastic. We are Vimeo Plus clients, so for $60/year, we can upload up to 5 gigs of video per week.
The only thing where it’s been lacking is mobile support, iPhone and iPad support. Today’s news is very good indeed.
Vimeo is greater in that it’s got less rampant spammers and serial idiot commentators, not to mention less clutter and aggressive advertising. Youtube is just kinda overwhelming for people to find cool content on, too much to filter through, whereas Vimeo is much better organized and community driven for finding relevant videos to your interest. A+++ for Vimeo.
I wish that Stage6 was still around.. ;(
After reading the official press release, I didn’t see Vimeo mentioning anything specific about Android support, only iPhone and iPad. So I’m gathering that the “app” that is the Universal Player is only for Apple devices, and won’t appear in the Android marketplace?
I use it because it doesn’t limit me to 10 minutes. I record the private music lessons I give and put it online in private mode for my students to use as a practice aide.
Vimeo’s content generally has a much higher production value. Many indie filmmakers and prosumers use it as a cheap means to get their content out. Every time I visit I find something really awesome. Can’t wait to see an app for Android.
My work blocks VIMEO. :'(
Let’s just hope Vimeo stays Vimeo. I don’t want it cluttered with teens ‘ridin’ the whip.’
YouTube can’t compete with Vimeo on any level. They now have HD – but still have limits on length and quality/uploading issues that Vimeo doesn’t.
YouTube is a dump. Switch to Vimeo for better control and fewer restrictions.
What does this have to do with Android phones? We aint got no stinkin’ HTML 5 to play back video. Apple’s demon supported format. Just as resource hungry as Flash, but another format.
If you are talking about sites that show Android stuff, that is about all except Apple fronted sites.
You guys do realize that the ‘faults’ of youtube is based on its size and popularity. there are more users which equates to more spammers and junk.
As Vimeo grows so its user base increases, its natural that the spammers and junk to increase too.
@Rushmore
I’m not sure what you mean. Android supports HTML5 as far as I am aware. I’ve used it on my Droid many times. Vimeo even now has an HTML 5 video player on their site for people who don’t have flash, and that works good with the H.264 codecs, or whatever they’re using…
Any video player that doesn’t let your skip to any point unless buffered is a definite NO.
Evan,
I am referring to streaming function. Sorry for not clarifying.
vimeo’s player is slow as hell on my linux machine. i always avoid it and watch youtube clip instead if available.
i prefer Vimeo to youtube wherever quality is concerned, vimeo does not over compress like youtube, and allows one to download the (hopefully) un compressed source.
if youtube offered an uncompressed low res version I’d take it over 720p with horrible compression artifacts.
I’m here because I tried to watch a video at a tech site (which uses vimeo), but it wouldn’t play on my phone. Apparently, mobile support costs extra. Why people can’t just link to the damned video but need to wrap it in flash or silverlight crap will always remain a mystery, I guess.