What Does `playsinline` Mean in Web Video?

Recently, I encountered some confusion regarding the playsinline attribute in web videos. After searching for a clear explanation, I realized the answer is quite straightforward (and I felt a bit silly for not knowing!).

The playsinline attribute, used like this:

<video controls="" playsinline="" src="..."></video>

instructs mobile browsers to play the video in its current location on the page, rather than the default fullscreen behavior.

Here's a comparison: Without playsinline, the video opens fullscreen; with playsinline, it plays inline.

(Note: The embedded videos above demonstrate the playsinline functionality within this post.)

Users can still switch to fullscreen even with playsinline, making it a practical default setting (though it's not technically the default—you must explicitly add it).

This attribute is frequently used in the attribute set needed to create a GIF-like video experience:

<video autoplay="" loop="" muted="" playsinline="" src="..."></video>

With all four attributes present, the video will autoplay and loop on mobile browsers, similar to a GIF, but with significantly better performance. The loop attribute can be omitted if looping isn't desired, but the other three are necessary for autoplay to function correctly.

I also discovered that the (apparently only) way to display a thumbnail on mobile devices (at least iOS) is to use the poster attribute. Even with preloading, a blank space appears without a poster image.

Here's the difference: Without a poster attribute, you see a blank; with it, a thumbnail is displayed.

<video controls="" poster="thumbnail.jpg" src="movie.mov"></video>

If using a poster is impractical, adding a border or similar visual cue around the video element can help improve the user experience and avoid the awkwardness of a floating play button.

The above is the detailed content of What Does `playsinline` Mean in Web Video?. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!