What is H.265 and why is it better than H.264?

Known as High Efficiency Video Coding (HVEC) and MPEG-H Part 2, H.265 is a video compression standard designed for the latest generations of high definition video. It is the successor to the widely used H.264 codec (also called AVC or MPEG-4 Part 10) and offers some significant improvements over the current compression scheme. H.265 was developed by the Joint Video Coding Collective Group (JCT-VC), a group of video encoding experts that began work on the compression standard in 2010.

The H.265 codec offers some significant improvements over the H.264 codec, which was first developed in the cloudy days of 2003. There are so many improvements to consider, but here are the highlights for consumers.

Better compression

H.265 offers significantly improved compression over H.264. The new codec can do almost twice the compression of its predecessor. With H.265, video with the same visual quality would only take up half the memory. Alternatively, videos with the same file size and bitrate can be significantly better. Part of this improvement comes from increasing the size of the macroblock. H.264 only allows 16 x 16 pixel macroblocks, which are too small to be really effective in higher resolution video. H.265 provides 64 x 64 pixel macroblocks (now called Coding Tree Units, or CTUs) to improve encoding efficiency at all resolutions.

Improved intraframe motion prediction

Video compression is based on predicting movement between frames. When there are no changes to a pixel, a video codec can save space by referencing it instead of playing it. Therefore, improved motion prediction means improved file size and compression quality. Along with the improved compression standards in H.265, we also found significant improvements in motion prediction and compensation.

Improved intra-frame prediction

Video compression also benefits from individual frame “motion” analysis, allowing you to compress individual video frames more efficiently. This can be achieved by describing the pixels with a mathematical function instead of the actual values ​​of the pixels. The function takes up less space than pixel data, which reduces file size. However, the codec must support a sufficiently advanced mathematical function for this method to be really useful. The H.265 intra-prediction function is much more detailed than H.264, it allows 33 directions of movement in nine directions of H.264.

Parallel processing

H.265 uses tiles and fragments that can be decoded independently of the rest of the frame. This means that the decoding process can be divided into multiple parallel streaming processes using more efficient decoding capabilities in modern multi-core processors. At higher video resolutions, this improved efficiency is necessary for decoding tempo-controlled video on lower hardware.

Larger maximum frame size
The world is getting higher resolution and H.265 supports it. With H.265, video can be encoded up to 8K UHD or 8192 pixels × 4320 pixels. Currently, only a few cameras can produce 8K video and very few monitors can display this resolution. But just as HD is the current standard, we can expect 4K and ultimately 8K to get the same level of attention.

Hardware support

The H.265 codec is specifically supported by the current generation of Intel processors. The Kaby Lake line of processors contains dedicated instruction sets for encoding and decoding H.265 video, as for future generations. This gives the codec many speed and consistency benefits over other high definition video codecs. Given the popularity and technical superiority of the H.264 codec, it’s not surprising that Intel prefers to ditch its hardware. Of course, this doesn’t limit the use of H.265 to Kaby Lake processors, but it does mean that computers using Kaby Lake chips will be more flexible for playing H.265 video. And considering that the computational overhead required to encode and decode high-definition H.265 video is quite significant,

Conclusion: where to find H.265?

H.265 is still less common than H.264, but it is rapidly gaining ground in the market. Apple’s new iPhone and iPad operating system, iOS 11, saves all video files in H.265. The next-generation MacBook Pro includes hardware support for Kaby Lake for codec decoding.

Everything you need to know about HEVC / H.265

You may have heard a lot about HEVC / H.265 lately. With the rise in popularity of 4K video, Apple has embraced this new industry standard on Mac Hight Sierra and iOS 11. Compared to H.264, H.265 / HEVC has great advantages, but what are they? And can you really take advantage of that H.265 / HEVC? I will go into HEVC / H.265 in detail below and hope it is helpful.

What is HEVC / H.265?

HEVC stands for High Efficiency Video Coding, also known as H.265 and MPEG-H Part 2, it is the latest and most advanced video compression standard jointly developed by MPEG and VCEG, which offers higher encoding efficiency and better improved video quality. HEVC is capable of compressing video with twice the data compression rate, but only requires half the bit rate to maintain the same video quality and halve the storage space compared to H.264.

Why does HEVC / H.265 come?

As you may know, more and more 4K and 8K videos are appearing in the world, while these HD videos require a lot of space, making it impossible to download and stream them in the best quality. To reduce storage space while maintaining the same H.264-based quality, it uses HEVC encoding technology.

HEVC can easily deliver video content to your Apple TV, computer, even iPhone or other portable devices with high quality and less space. If you like to play HEVC / H.265 videos, you can decode the files first and play them through the media player. However, you can also convert DVD to H.265 codec to get half the size but the same video quality. Therefore, many consumer devices and operating systems gradually support HEVC / H.265.

H.265 performance, advantages and disadvantages

H.265 is designed to deliver higher quality video with limited bandwidth that is cut in half. This means that we can enjoy 1080p high definition video with our smartphone and tablets online. The H.265 standard keeps pace with the high resolution display.

The main advantage of H.265 is that H.265 has better compression performance and lower bandwidth utilization, which can further reduce the design bit rate to reduce transmission and storage costs. And now, many high-definition 4K devices, such as 4K Blu-ray player or other streaming media players, support H.265. By the way, you can also convert H.265 to other supported formats with a free H.265 converter to play on your devices.

It is worth noting that the investment in H.265 is huge, especially after H.264; many industrial companies will hesitate to choose H.265. On the other hand, H.265 has 3 groups of patents with different price structures and terms. Lack of clarity on royalties stopped the adoption of H.265.

Development and current status of H.265

H.265 is now increasingly supported by many platforms and operating systems, but it is not widely supported. The successful popularization of a video standard depends on several aspects, including the decision of the standards organization, the emergence of competitors, applications, and royalties. Unlike H.264, H.265 requires high license fees, which are charged by HEVC Advance, an independent license manager.

Like the development of a high-resolution display, H.265 will also evolve. Despite its industrial rival VP9 and other limiting factors, H.265 will find a way out and gain massive popularity.