Video upload quality is bad

[Verdad]

Every time I upload a video from my iphone to Dropbox the quality is awful. Although the videos look perfect on my iphone12, once uploaded to my Dropbox, the image is glitchy. The file is glitchy on all my devices when I view in Dropbox, but plays fine from my photos app on my Mac, iPad, and phone. My WiFi is good, so that’s not the issue. I use Dropbox to share photos and videos from my phone with the person who handles my social media, so it’s important for her to have full rez hi quality images to work with. I have no problem working with still images, but the video quality is awful. 

[Jay]

Hi @Verdad, thanks for bringing this to our attention.

Previewing videos from the mobile app and site can vary depending on the speed of the internet. Downloading the file directly would ensure the same quality as it was when uploaded to the site.

If you're previewing from the mobile device directly, could you try offlining the file first to see if this improves the video?

Keep me updated with any progress!

[Larry8369]

Me too. The video of the uploaded file is terrible.

[Larry8369]

My WiFi speed is 2 gig up and down. The video is always terrible.

[Megan]

Hi @Larry8369, thanks for posting here! 

Is the quality of the video bad, when you preview it directly through Dropbox, or when you download it locally? 

How large is the file itself? Have you tried previewing it, using cellular data, instead of WiFi? 

And if so, do you get the same results? 

Keep me posted! 

[Larry8369]

Megan,

Thank you for responding to my post. The videos sizes can range from 150mb to over 1000. All taken with my iPhone in 4K resolution. The issue is when I view it on my iPhone. The playback is grainy. My WiFi at home is a 2 gig fiber optic line. On WiFi I usually get 600-700mb up and down. After further investigation on my part, I’ve come to the conclusion that the problem doesn’t lye on my side. After receiving your email I tried the video playback on my iPhone directly from Dropbox on my WiFi and it played beautifully. This has not been the case until now. I’ve changed nothing so I figure your servers have issues or the internet routing has.

Thank you,
Larry Rosenberg

[Walter]

Hey @Larry8369 - sorry to jump in here, but have you tried clearing the app's cache at all since you first noticed this?

Also, does the issue persist on a web browser too? 

[Larry8369]

I have not viewed them on a web browser and never cleared the cash. But like pay per view services the likes of Netflix and others, all movies play well on my iPhone. My expectations when o pay for a service it should work regardless of the device I’m using.

[Dylanlauder]

I try to upload various videos into a new empty folder(From MacBook), and they take awhile to upload as usual. But after they upload, I watch them back and they are all super bad quality. They upload in 480p. I upload them from an SD card and they are all perfect quality on the SD Card. Does anyone know why this is happening?

[Hannah]

Hey @Larry8369, we appreciate your feedback on this and I'll make sure to pass your comments along to our team.

I would highly suggest that you do clear the Dropbox app's cache, if that's where you're seeing the issue, to see if it helps, but keep in mind that the previews of the files are not necessarily representative of the quality of the actual video.

If you'd like to view your video in its full quality, you can download it either to your phone or your computer.

The same goes for your issue as well, @Dylanlauder. I moved your post here, since the issue is pretty similar.

If you're having this issue on our website, I would suggest trying a different browser or to clear your browser's cache, but do keep in mind the above.