> the biggest draw back is the browser preloader and general performance

So why can't we just fix that issue with the `<video>` tag? (Maybe with a `preload` attribute or something.) It just seems semantically incorrect to be putting videos in `<img>` tags (and yes, I realize this same argument applies to GIFs as well).

> Anytime you want to add audio or pause/control playback, this will be the wrong solution

I'm referring to me as a user showing controls even when the site has them hidden. Obviously as a developer I can always just choose to not use this feature and use a video tag instead.