Play videos in the browser

  1. What video formats can be played in the browser?
  2. View videos in a separate window
  3. Video problems

What video formats can be played in the browser?

Yandex Browser can open video files with the following extensions: .mp4, .flv, .swf, .avi, .webm, .mpg, .ogv, .x-m4v, .wmv, .m4v.

Video files with the .mov and .quicktime extensions are not supported.

View videos in a separate window

You can view videos in a separate browser window. For example, you can simultaneously launch an app and accompanying video instructions. The video player window stays «on top» of all the other windows so you can see it no matter which application you are using. You can drag the window to any part of the screen or resize the window to see the content hidden under it. The video playback will continue even if you minimize the browser window.

Open a video in a separate window
  1. Open an online video.
  2. Hold your cursor towards the top of the video player and click .
Совет. You can drag the icon over the video player as you like.
Turn off video viewing in a separate window
  1. Click  → Settings.
  2. In the Appearance settings, turn off the Allow videos to open in a new window option.
Automatic video popup in a separate window
Ограничение. Automatic video popup is enabled if you have launched the video yourself or it plays back with sound. The video does not pop up automatically if launched in Incognito mode.

If you switch to another tab after starting a video, the video opens in another window automatically. To disable this feature, turn off the Automatically open video in a separate window option in the upper-right corner of the window.

You can also disable the automatic video popup in the settings:

  1. Click  → Settings.
  2. In the Appearance section, disable the Automatically open video in a separate window option.

Video problems

  1. Videos don't play; they download to my computer
  2. Videos don't play on a site
  3. Problems playing videos
  4. Error «Adobe Flash Player was blocked because it is outdated»
  5. The browser doesn't support NPAPI and Unity

Videos don't play; they download to my computer

If the website owner does not allow you to open files in Yandex Browser, the file will download to your computer. To open it in the browser, drag the icon of the downloaded file that appeared to the right of the SmartBox to the browser window or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + O and select the file from your Downloads folder.

Videos don't play on a site

Try turning off Turbo mode, blocking Flash data, and turning hardware acceleration on or off.

Turn off Turbo mode

Sometimes Turbo mode interferes with playing audio or video. To turn it off:

  1. Click  → Extensions.
  2. Select the Tools section.
  3. Turn off Turbo.

Check whether the problem persists.

Allow Flash data

The browser might have an extension enabled that blocks Flash banners and videos. To turn it off:

  1. Click  → Extensions.
  2. Select the Ad blocker section.
  3. Turn off the Flash content blocking extension.

Check whether the problem persists.

Turn the hardware accelerator on or off

Try turning the on or off:

  1. Click  → Settings.
  2. At the bottom of the Settings page, click Show advanced settings.
  3. Go to the System section. If the Use hardware acceleration if possible option is on, turn it off. If the Use hardware acceleration if possible option is off, turn it on.
  4. Restart the browser to apply these changes.

Check whether the problem persists.

If your problem persists, send a message to our support staff using the feedback form.

Problems playing videos

If your browser displays a black screen instead of the video, the video buffers, or the image shakes when you're playing online games, try using one of these methods to solve the problem.

Change your hardware acceleration settings

Try turning the on or off:

  1. Click  → Settings.
  2. At the bottom of the Settings page, click Show advanced settings.
  3. Go to the System section. If the Use hardware acceleration if possible option is on, turn it off. If the Use hardware acceleration if possible option is off, turn it on.
  4. Restart the browser to apply these changes.

Check whether the problem persists.

Update your video card drivers
  1. Click Start → Dashboard → Device dispatcher.
  2. Go to the Video adapters section. A list of video cards appears.
  3. Right-click on the name of your video card.
  4. In the context menu, select Update drivers.

Check whether the problem persists.

If your problem persists, send a message to our support staff using the feedback form. In the email, indicate that the drivers were updated.

Error «Adobe Flash Player was blocked because it is outdated»

If you see the message «Adobe Flash Player was blocked because it is outdated» under the SmartBox, update Flash Player. To do this:

  1. Open the .
  2. Choose your operating system.
  3. Select the version of Chromium with PPAPI.
  4. Follow the installation instructions.
  5. If you have problems installing the player, send a message to Support using the Feedback form.

The browser doesn't support NPAPI and Unity

Yandex Browser no longer supports the NPAPI plugin that powers the Unity Web Player. This technology is outdated. Unity has also supporting that plugin.

the new secure version of Adobe Flash Player with PPAPI support.