A lot has been written concerning ­­two popular video sites, Viddler and Vimeo, and the differences contained therein. However, the breadth of knowledge has been written over a multitude of websites. I’d like to summarize the general conclusion here. Of course, your decision to use the former or the latter to host your videos is based upon what features you think a video site should offer. But here are the facts.

Let’s begin with the quality of the video. While Vimeo provides for high quality video, Viddler does not. Viddler tends to stutter slightly on computers with a slower internet connection, where Vimeo runs seemingly smooth regardless. A photograph on Flickr compares the quality of the same high quality video uploaded to both sites. When it comes to quality, Vimeo certainly comes out on top.

Second, the usability of the video player. While Vimeo’s player is functional, it’s rather boring. It’s a one-size-fits-all, and it has no interactive features. The other downside is that when you click on the video, it doesn’t even link to the Vimeo website. Viddler, however, has timed comments (which can be turned on or off as the user sees fit), tag adding, and a button to retrieve the embed code. It’s far more interactive, and customizable if a user would rather have a simple player. Here, Viddler seems to win.

In terms of the community, Vimeo tends to serve the needs of the younger audience while Viddler seems to serve the needs of a much greater audience ranging from all age demographics.

So if you’re looking for an interactive video player, then Viddler is your best bet. But if you’re looking for a site that will attend to your high quality videos, then Vimeo might be for you. Tell us what you think of Viddler and Vimeo!