How to upload and view 4K images on Twitter for Android and iOS

Twitter allows users to upload images in 4K resolution on Android and iOS so your followers can see the same image that you captured. Here's how to quickly enable the feature.

Now you can upload images and videos to Twitter in 4K resolution.  (Robin Sinha/HT Tech)

One of the most bothersome downsides of sharing images on platforms like Twitter is the heavy image compression and rescaling that occurs, showing your followers an image that does not look exactly like the one you clicked with your camera. While social media companies usually do this to save bandwidth and optimise storage on their own servers, it can have a negative impact on the final viewing experience.

Twitter is looking to change that experience, with the arrival of high-quality 4K image support on both iOS and Android. The service will allow users to upload an image in 4K, then view it in the same resolution that when they go to their profile — their followers will also see the exact same quality.

However, if you just went through your Twitter settings but couldn't find an option to enable to upload and view images in 4K, it's because Twitter hasn't built in a separate setting for the feature. Instead, you can go through the following steps to start uploading and viewing images in 4K from your smartphone:

Step 1: From the main feed on the Twitter app (this works on iOS and Android) tap the ‘hamburger' menu at the top left corner of the screen.

Step 2: In the new pull out menu, choose Settings and Privacy.

Step 3: Now tap on Data Usage and look for a setting titled High-quality images and set it to Mobile data and Wi-Fi.

Step 4: Look for the High-quality video setting right below it the previous setting for images, and set it to Mobile data and Wi-Fi.

While we recommend setting both image and video settings to Mobile data and Wi-Fi so that you will always upload and view images in 4K, if you have a more conservative data plan, you can always set it to Wi-Fi only instead. Keep in mind that you will only be able to see 4K content if the uploader has posted it in that resolution so some images may still show up in less than 4K resolution, even with the setting enabled.