If you’ve ever sent or received a video through a text message only to find out the quality turns out to be significantly lower than the original, you’re not alone. Most Android users have encountered this issue at one time. Even though your videos look crystal clear when you watch them on your phone, the quality goes down as soon as you send them through a text, turning your videos into a grainy, blurry mess. So, can anything be done about this issue?
Thankfully, there are many different ways in which you’ll be able to send videos from your Android phone, without losing any quality during the process. To that end, here is a guide detailing how you could send good quality videos, as well as some explanations as to why the quality issues arise in the first place:
Why does the quality of your videos go down?
First of all, it’s important to note that this problem most likely isn’t caused by the smartphone itself, especially if you have a newer model with a high-quality camera. The low-quality video issue generally comes from your mobile network.
Mobile carriers tend to have a limit of file sizes that are allowed to be sent, which usually caps at around 1.5MB. The videos that you take on your smartphone, especially if you’re filming in HD, tend to be much larger than that.
This means that whenever you send a video through a text message, your file will be automatically compressed to fit the required size limits. This compression right here is what normally results in grainy and blurry videos.
How can you send good quality videos?
If you wish to send HD videos with your smartphone without compression or losing any video quality in the process, the best course of action is to choose a service that communicates through the internet, instead of the mobile network. Here are some options:
- Wi-Fi messaging services
If you have an account on any social media network that utilizes internet-based messaging services, such as Viber, WhatsApp, or Facebook Messenger, you can effortlessly send high-quality videos from your phone.
All you need to do is find the video you’d like to send in your phone’s Gallery application, and then press the Share icon (two dots connected with two lines). Here, you’d simply tap on your preferred messaging service.
2. Email services
Email clients tend to have a higher limit for attaching files (usually around 25MB) and are also a great option if your video falls within that size range.
To send your video via email when using a smartphone, simply open your email client’s application, and start a new email. Here, press the Attachments icon (paperclip) and choose the video you’d like to send. Finally, choose a recipient and include an email body if you wish.
3. Cloud-based services
If the size of your video exceeds the 25MB limit, you could also utilize a cloud service such as Dropbox or Google Drive to send your videos without losing any quality. Although the specific procedure will depend on the service itself, most cloud-based platforms work quite similarly.
Firstly, you will need to download the services dedicated app and upload the video there. Then, you will need to get a link for your video (usually by pressing the Share icon) which you could then share with the person you’d want to watch your video.
4. Google Photos
Every Android smartphone comes with Google Photos already installed on the device. If you utilize this application for storing your pictures and videos, you could share your videos via Google Photos as well, as long as the recipient also uses this application.
To do this, simply open the Google Photos app on your smartphone, and locate the video you’d like to send. Then, press the Share icon, and type in the name of the person to which you’d like to send your video. Once they appear, click on their name, and then press the Send button to finally share your quality video.
And there you have it! Regardless of which service you choose for sharing your videos, all of them are a much better option than regular text messaging, and will ensure your recorded videos get received in the highest possible quality.
