iOS 5 To Bring High Quality YouTube Video Playback

We’re still seeing some of the 200 new features of iOS 5 being discovered now the first beta is in the hands of developers, and one such feature could be improved video quality from YouTube videos, according to iDB.

Discovered by iDevice hackers @Chronic and @Sonny Dickson via internal iOS 5 settings, the new setting will enable high quality video playback through the YouTube app even when connected to a 3G network.

Currently, video quality is reduced when not connected to WiFi, presumably at the request of Apple’s carrier partners around the globe. It appears that with the release of iOS 5 however, Apple will no longer pander to its partners but will rather give its users the high quality YouTube streaming they have been crying out for.

Jailbreakers have been finding ways to force iOS to stream higher quality YouTube video for years now with the aid of apps like 3G Unrestrictor. Along with allowing 3G Skype calling, YouTube was one of the biggest uses for the jailbreak tweak.

This isn’t the first example of Apple growing strong enough in the mobile market to no longer be dictated to by the carriers. Their new iMessage system – a direct competitor to RIM’s BlackBerry Messenger – goes head-to-head with expensive SMS charges currently levied by smartphone carriers. Apple of yesteryear would not have had the clout to pull off such a move, and the pushing of more data through 3G networks could be another example of the shift in power being witnessed in the mobile device industry.

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