Video sharing site comparison?

I don't shoot much video but do occasionally want to share some clips with friends and relatives. Presently I upload them to Smugmug, which I use for my still photos, but uploading video to there is extremely slow.

So how about YouTube vs. Vimeo? I gather Youtube videos are all public, which I don't want, so I'm thinking Vimeo if it would be faster uploading.

Any thoughts?

You can make YouTube videos private, so they can only be reached with a direct link. And YouTube allows for larger uploads (with Vimeo you need a Pro membership.)

OK, thanks!

Now, I've just answered my own question by signing up and trying Vimeo for free. A test upload actually took a bit longer than the same one to Smugmug, plus I didn't find the Vimeo menus immediately user friendly, so I'll stick with Smugmug since short video clips storage is basically all I need for now.

There are many things effecting upload speeds to the video servers. First is the time of day. If you upload a video at peak traffic hours it is going to take a while. Other thing to remember is Vimeo YouTube and Smugmug most likely have many servers all over their market area. With that being the case your experience may vary significantly from someone who would be routed to another server but still on the same server.

The only way to know which will work best is to try them for yourself. The best option to improve your upload speeds is not to do it at peek times.

teekay wrote in post #18082632
I don't shoot much video but do occasionally want to share some clips with friends and relatives. Presently I upload them to Smugmug, which I use for my still photos, but uploading video to there is extremely slow.

So how about YouTube vs. Vimeo? I gather Youtube videos are all public, which I don't want, so I'm thinking Vimeo if it would be faster uploading.

Any thoughts?

I use both Vimeo and YouTube for different purposes.

I produce some videos that need group feedback and approval. The big advantage for me of Vimeo is that I can create a group and allow access to videos only to that group (or multiple different groups). This is superior to YouTube "unlisted" videos because I don't have to provide individual links. Members of the group can log on at any time and view all the videos I've opened to the group in a "library" format. I can also revise and re-upload a video without having to provide another link to it.

When we do select a video for public dissemination, I transfer it to YouTube.

Vimeo also gives me better control of the sharing site appearance as it "envelopes" the video. For instance, in Vimeo I can set what "suggestions for futher viewing" the viewer sees when the video ends: Nothing, my own videos, or Vimeo's library. This is a big deal for someone using a sharing site from their own website because it doesn't lead people out of their site. I can set surrounding colors, whether controls are visible, and consistent fonts. Vimeo also provides a video sales shopping basket function.

This is why Vimeo has a cost--it has provisions for professionals to use it as a professional sharing vehicle.