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Supported media codecs for Windows Phone 8

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[ This article is for Windows Phone 8 developers. If you’re developing for Windows 10, see the latest documentation. ]

 

Windows Phone provides support for various audio and video codecs depending on the processor installed in the device.

Important Note:

Windows Phone Emulator performance may differ from actual hardware codec performance. Always test your app on a physical Windows Phone device to check its performance.

The following sections contain detailed information about the codecs you can use with the various processors used in Windows Phone devices.

This topic contains the following sections.

 

Audio Support

Audio codecs supported by the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 (MSM8x27, MSM8x30, MSM8960) and Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974) processors on Windows Phone

The following table lists the audio codecs that you can use with Windows Phone s that contain these processors.

Feature

MP3

WMA Std 9.2

WMA Pro

AMR-NB

AAC-LC

AAC+

eAAC+

Containers

MP3

WMA

WMA

3GP, 3G2, AMR

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4A, MPR, AAC

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4A, AAC

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4A, AAC

Bit depth

16

16

16

16

16

16

16

Max bit rate (per second)

320 kbits

384 kbits

768 kbits

12.2 kbits

320 kbits

64 kbits for stereo

160 kbits for 5.1

32 kbits for stereo

Max sample rate

48 kHz

48 kHz

48 kHz

8 kHz

48 kHz

48 kHz

48 kHz

Channels support

1, 2

1, 2

1, 2

1

1, 2

1, 2

1, 2

Streaming support

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes for 3GP, 3G2

Yes

Yes

Yes

Emulator support

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Note

ADPCM is not supported prior to Windows Phone 8 (8.0.10322.0).

Audio codecs supported by the Qualcomm Snapdragon S1 (MSM7x27a, MSM8x50) and Snapdragon S2 (MSM8x55) processors on Windows Phone

The following table lists the audio codecs that you can use with Windows Phone s that contain these processors.

Feature

MP3

WMA Std 9.2

WMA Pro

AMR-NB

AAC-LC

AAC+

eAAC+

Containers

MP3

WMA

WMA

3GP, 3G2, AMR

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4A, AAC

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4A, AAC

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4A, AAC

Bit depth

16

16

16

16

16

16

16

Max bit rate (per second)

320 kbits

256 kbits

256 kbits

12.2 kbits

576 kbits

320 kbits

320 kbits

Max sample rate

48 kHz

48 kHz

48 kHz

48 kHz

48 kHz

48 kHz

48 kHz

Channels support

1, 2

1, 2

1, 2

1

1, 2

1, 2

1, 2

Streaming support

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes for 3GP, 3G2

Yes

Yes

Yes

Emulator support

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

No

No
Important Note:

The 7x27a processor allows audio input on only one stereo bus at a time. This means that applications cannot concurrently capture more than one audio source on 7x27a devices. If your application uses the AudioSink class with the FileSink class on a 7x27a device, the AudioSink class will not get audio samples, and the AudioCaptureDevice object will be set to null. The FileSink class works fine on the 7x27a processor. The FileSink class and the AudioSink class work correctly if used independent of one another.

Note

The 7x27a processor does not allow accessing the FM radio and microphone simultaneously.

WAV audio support

The following table lists WAV audio formats that are supported starting with Windows Phone 8 (8.0.10322.0).

Feature

LPCM

MS ADPCM

IMA ADPCM

GSM 6.10

G.711 (A-Law, µ-law)

Containers

WAV

WAV

WAV

WAV

WAV

Bit depth

16

16

16

8

8

Max bit rate (per second)

1500 kbits

64 kbits

64 kbits

13 kbits

64 kbits

Max sample rate

96 kHz

8 kHz

8 kHz

8 kHz

8 kHz

Channels support

1, 2

1, 2

1, 2

1, 2

1, 2

Streaming support

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Emulator support

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Note

WAV formats are not Qualcomm chipset dependent.

Video Support

If you want to use a video codec that works on all Windows Phone devices, use H.264-encoded video in MP4 files. Because the 7x27a processor defines the baseline, make sure your files do not exceed the parameters listed in the table for H.264 video on a 7x27a processor.

In addition, the IsMultiResolutionVideoSupported property indicates whether the processor supports HD video. Check this property at runtime if you want to scale the video based on the processor in the Windows Phone.

Video codecs supported by the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 (MSM8x30, MSM8960) and Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974) processors on Windows Phone

The following table lists the video codecs that you can use with Windows Phone s that contain these processors.

Feature

H.263

VC1

VC1

VC1

MPEG-4 Pt 2

MPEG-4 Pt 2

H.264

H.264

H.264

Containers

3GP, 3G2

WMV

WMV

WMV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V

MP4, M4V, AVI

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

Profile

0

Simple

Main

Advanced

Simple

Advanced Simple

Baseline

Main

High

Level

70

Medium

High

L3

L5

L5

4

4

4

Max average video bit Rate

8 Mbps

20 Mbps

20 Mbps

20 Mbps

20 Mbps

20 Mbps

20 Mbps

20 Mbps

20 Mbps

Max peak video bit rate

16 Mbps

40 Mbps

40 Mbps

40 Mbps

40 Mbps

40 Mbps

40 Mbps

40 Mbps

40 Mbps

Max resolution and frame rate

720 x 480 @ 30 fps

352 × 288 @ 15fps

1920x1080 @ 30 fps

1920x1080 @ 30 fps

1920x1080 @ 30 fps

1920x1080 @ 30 fps

1920x1080 @ 30 fps

1920x1080 @ 30 fps

1920x1080 @ 30 fps

Smooth streaming support

No

No

No

Yes

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Emulator support

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Video codecs supported by the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 (MSM8x27) processor on Windows Phone

The following table lists the video codecs that you can use with Windows Phone s that contain this processor.

Feature

H.263

VC1

VC1

VC1

MPEG-4 Pt 2

MPEG-4 Pt 2

H.264

H.264

H.264

Profile

0

Simple

Main

Advanced

Simple

Advanced Simple

Baseline

Main

High

Level

70

Medium

High

L3

L5

L5

4

4

4

Max average video bit Rate

8 Mbps

14 Mbps

14 Mbps

14 Mbps

14 Mbps

14 Mbps

14 Mbps

14 Mbps

14 Mbps

Max peak video bit rate

16 Mbps

28 Mbps

28 Mbps

28 Mbps

28 Mbps

28 Mbps

28 Mbps

28 Mbps

28 Mbps

Max resolution and frame rate

720 x 480 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

Video codecs supported by the Qualcomm Snapdragon S1 (MSM8x50) and Snapdragon S2 (MSM8x55) processors on Windows Phone

The following table lists the video codecs that you can use with Windows Phone s that contain these processors.

Feature

H.263

VC1

VC1

VC1

MPEG-4 Pt 2

MPEG-4 Pt 2

MPEG-4 Pt 2 (for 512-MB devices)

H.264

H.264

H.264

Containers

3GP, 3G2

WMV

WMV

WMV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

Profile

0

Simple

Main

Advanced

Simple

Advanced Simple

Simple

Baseline

Main

High

Level

40

Medium

Medium

L1

3b

3b

5

3.1

3.1

3.1

Max average video bit Rate

2 Mbps

2 Mbps

2 Mbps

2 Mbps

2 Mbps

2 Mbps

10 Mbps

10 Mbps

10 Mbps

10 Mbps

Max peak video bit rate

20 Mbps

20 Mbps

20 Mbps

20 Mbps

27 Mbps

27 Mbps

27 Mbps

27 Mbps

27 Mbps

27 Mbps

Max resolution and frame rate

800x600 @ 30 fps

800x600 @ 30 fps

800x600 @ 30 fps

800x600 @ 30 fps

800x600 @ 30 fps

800x600 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

1280x720 @ 30 fps

Smooth streaming support

No

No

No

Yes

No

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Emulator support

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Note

8x50 devices support up to Level 3.0 at 720x480 @ 30 fps or 720x576 @ 25 fps.

Important Note:

Smooth Streaming Media Element (SSME) allows for dynamic resolution changes. This option is only supported on 8x55 based devices. The 8x50 and 7x27a processors do not support this feature. Only a single bit rate and resolution can be used for playing back video content on those devices by using smooth streaming.

Video codecs supported by the Qualcomm Snapdragon S1 (MSM7x27a) processor on Windows Phone

The following table lists the video codecs that you can use with Windows Phone s that contain these processors.

Feature

H.263

VC1

VC1

MPEG-4 Pt 2

H.264

H.264

H.264

Containers

3GP, 3G2

WMV

WMV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

Profile

0

Simple

Main

Simple

Baseline

Main

High

Level

30

Main

Low

3

2.0

1.3 - CABAC, 2.0 - CAVLC

1.3 - CABAC, 2.0 - CAVLC

Max average video bit rate

2 Mbps

2 Mbps

1 Mbps

2 Mbps

2 Mbps

CABAC: 2 Mbps, CAVLC: 768 Kbps

CABAC: 2 Mbps, CAVLC: 768 Kbps

Max peak video bit rate

4 Mbps

Not Available

Not Available

4 Mbps

4 Mbps

4 Mbps

4 Mbps

Max resolution and frame rate

800×480 @ 30 fps

800×480 @ 30 fps

400×240 @ 30 fps

800×480 @ 30 fps

800×480 @ 30 fps

800×480 @ 30 fps

800×480 @ 30 fps

Smooth streaming support

No

No

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Emulator support

No

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Note

The 7x27a processor does not support the VC1 Advanced profile.

Video codecs supported by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 (MSM8210 and MSM8212) processor on Windows Phone

The following table lists the video codecs that you can use with Windows Phone s that contain these processors.

Feature

H.263

VC1

VC1

MPEG-4 Pt 2

MPEG-4 Pt 2

H.264

H.264

H.264

Containers

3GP, 3G2

WMV

WMV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

3GP, 3G2, MP4, M4V, MOV

Profile

0

Simple

Main

Simple

Advanced Simple

Baseline

Main

High

Level

70

Main

High

6

5

3.1

3.1

3.1

Max average video bit rate

4 Mbps

3 Mbps

3 Mbps

4 Mbps

4

4 Mbps

4 Mbps

4 Mbps

Max peak video bit rate

8 Mbps

6 Mbps

6 Mbps

8 Mbps

8 Mbps

8 Mbps

8 Mbps

8 Mbps

Max resolution and frame rate

1280×720 @ 30 fps

864×480 @ 30 fps

864×480 @ 30 fps

1280×720 @ 30 fps

1280×720 @ 30 fps

1280×720 @ 30 fps

1280×720 @ 30 fps

1280×720 @ 30 fps

Smooth streaming support

No

No

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Emulator support

No

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Note

The MSM8210 and MSM8212 processors do not support the VC1 Advanced profile.

Image Support

Image codecs supported on Windows Phone

The following table lists the image codecs that you can use on all Windows Phone devices.

Feature

Bitmap

Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG)

Portable Network Graphics

Graphics Interchange Format (both GIF87a and GIF89a)

Container

BMP

JPG

PNG

GIF

Emulator support

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

See Also

Other Resources

Media for Windows Phone