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General Questions

Questions Overivew​

What is H5Live and how can it guarantee ultra-low latency live streaming and playback?​

To respond to our customers’ needs for ultra-low latency use cases, the nanocosmos team invented the plugin-free nanoStream H5Live stream delivery and playback technology.

nanoStream H5Live is a client-server delivery and playback solution based on HTML5 technologies, including HLS on iOS, enabling ultra-low latency browser-based playout, plugin-free on all web browsers.

tip

See the separate H5Live section in our docs, and our blog posts.

Which browsers/platforms does the nanoStream H5Live Player support?​

Browser support​

The low-latency nanoStream h5Live Player runs on all full-featured HTML5 browsers including

  • Safari 10 and higher on iOS, iPadOS and macOS
  • Chrome 54 and higher on desktop and mobile
  • Firefox 48 and higher
  • MS Edge (all versions)
  • Internet Explorer 11 (starting Windows 8.1)

For Internet Explorer 11 on Windows 7, H5Live player contains a Flash player fallback for RTMP.

Browser emulations​

Browser emulation might not be supported. Using the player in a browser emulation mode could lead to unexpected behaviour due to mismatching conditions. It is highly recommended to use real devices for testing and display.

Issues on specific systems​

Generally nanoStream H5live player support in a certain browser depends on the availability of the involved technologies, codecs and formats. For Windows, macOS and Android:

  • HTML5 Video
  • Web Sockets
  • Media Source Extensions
  • Support for fMP4, H.264 Video, AAC Audio

On iOS, nanoStream H5Live uses a unique version of HLS which works plugin-free on all Safari versions starting iOS 10.

On some Android-based mobile devices, the default browser is a stripped-down version not featuring all HTML5 elements. For example, the Samsung Internet browser is rather based on Chromium than Chrome. This results in differences regarding the support of certain technologies, codecs and formats. Read more here.

The Samsung Internet Android browser is one example, where the HTML5 Media Source Extension is missing or disabled, one of the key HTML5 technologies.

We have been able to confirm that the MSE feature can be enabled through internet://flags.
In version 6.4, while the default was 'disabled'.
In version 7(.2) this flag has been removed while the default seems to be 'disabled' still. We are ongoing monitoring Samsung Internet progress.

The nanoPlayer setup call is returning a specific error message in case that the browser does not support one of the required technologies.

player.setup(config).then(function (config) {
    console.log("setup success");
}, function (error) {
    alert(error.message);
});
Setup Error

This browser does not fully support HTML5 and H5Live. Supported are: Chrome >=54 (Windows, macOS, Android), Firefox >=48 (Windows, macOS, Android), Microsoft Edge (Windows), Microsoft Internet Explorer 11 (at least Windows 8), Safari (macOS & at least iOS 10).

How can I check browser support?​

You can check the static capabilities array of the NanoPlayers class NanoPlayer.capabilities. If the array has values, the player is supported. Values can be h5live, flash and native.

Is H5Live supported in native apps in a Webview on iOS and Android?​

H5Live Player works on native browsers like Safari on iOS and Chrome on Android. For native apps, you can use WebView components in-app, which both operating systems support. The operating systems need to support H264 video and AAC audio formats for playback, which most platforms do.

Mobile Webviews​

Mobile webviews provide a seamless integration of web content within a native mobile application, offering numerous advantages for a smooth user experience. However, certain considerations need to be addressed, particularly on iOS and Android devices.

Recommendation:​

We strongly recommend utilizing webviews with remote pages to leverage their benefits, including enhanced performance and flexibility. This approach ensures compatibility with various web technologies and allows for seamless integration of dynamic content.

  • Android

    Android webviews generally offer robust support for web technologies and extensions. However, it's important to consider the specific APIs and features required by your web content to ensure compatibility across different Android versions and device configurations.

  • iOS

    In some cases, such as with the introduction of the Managed Media Source Extension API by Apple in iOS 17.1, playback on iOS devices may encounter issues when loaded within a webview. This is due to the inherent limitations of webviews and their interaction with certain APIs and extensions.

    Example of configuring a WKWebView instance in an iOS application to load a remote page:

//  ViewController.swift
//  wkwebview


import UIKit
import WebKit

class ViewController: UIViewController, WKNavigationDelegate {
    var webView: WKWebView!

    override func loadView() {
        let webConfiguration = WKWebViewConfiguration()
        webConfiguration.preferences.javaScriptEnabled = true
        webConfiguration.mediaPlaybackRequiresUserAction = false
        webConfiguration.allowsInlineMediaPlayback = true
        webConfiguration.mediaTypesRequiringUserActionForPlayback = []
        webView = WKWebView(frame: .zero, configuration: webConfiguration)
        webView.navigationDelegate = self
        if #available(iOS 16.4, *) {
            webView.isInspectable = true
        } else {
            // Fallback on earlier versions
        }
        view = webView
    }

    override func viewDidLoad() {
        super.viewDidLoad()
        let url = URL(string: “https://your-page.com")!
        webView.load(URLRequest(url: url))
        webView.allowsBackForwardNavigationGestures = true
    }
}

Is there an API documentation available?​

Yes, you can find it here.

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