# Compress iPhone video on your Mac

> Compress 4K and HDR iPhone video (.mov or .mp4) on your Mac with x264 to share it, and compare the copy frame by frame. Nothing is uploaded.

- URL: https://meetsmally.com/compress-iphone-video/
- Language: en
- Spanish version: https://meetsmally.com/es/comprimir-video-iphone/
- Site map for assistants: https://meetsmally.com/llms.txt

Drop a .mov or .mp4 from your iPhone, 4K or HDR included, and Smally for Mac makes a lighter copy to share by WhatsApp, Slack, iMessage or email. Your video never leaves your Mac.

## Drop. Check. Keep.

1. **Bring your file.** Drag it onto Smally, open it with Smally from Finder, or choose Compress with Smally from the Services menu. There is no setting to pick.
2. **Have a look.** See the new size in the row and compare the copy with its original before you keep it.
3. **Keep the lighter copy.** Save puts it next to the original, named like photo-smally. Smally never replaces your original or any file already there.

## What Smally makes from an iPhone video

A copy for sharing: H.264 video made with x264, up to 1080p and 30 frames a second, so a 4K iPhone clip becomes a 1080p copy. A clip recorded with Slo-mo is skipped, because the copy would play at normal speed. The HDR an iPhone records (HLG) is converted so the colours look right on any screen.

A copy is kept only when it is at least 10% lighter than the original. Videos can be up to 8 GB, and the list holds up to 50 files at a time.

## Before you send it

- Smally promises no size: the copy is made at a constant quality, so a longer clip stays heavier. Check the size in the row, because WhatsApp, Slack, iMessage and your mail provider set their own limits.
- Video copies are made for sharing, so they can look a little different from the original. Play the video next to its copy, or step through it a frame at a time, before you rely on one.
- Save puts the copy next to the original. Smally never replaces your video.

## What it skips

- Some videos are skipped, with the reason: protected files, slow motion, HDR10 and Dolby Vision profile 5, other wide-colour video, and clips with more than one video track.

## Why not in the browser

Video needs the app, on your Mac. The browser version at /compress/ is for JPEG, PNG and WebP images, and a video dropped there is never uploaded.

## Quick facts

| This kind of file | Smally in the browser | Smally for Mac |
| --- | --- | --- |
| What it takes | Not video: the row says Smally for Mac takes it, and nothing is uploaded | MP4, MOV and M4V from your iPhone, up to 8 GB |
| What it makes | Nothing: video needs the app | An H.264 copy for sharing, at most 1080p and 30 frames a second |
| What stays | The video, untouched | The original; HLG HDR is converted so the colours look right |
| Per batch | Not handled here | Up to 50 files at a time |
| Where it is processed | In this tab, on your device. Nothing is uploaded | On your Mac. Nothing is uploaded |
| When the original is kept | Always: video is not handled here | A copy would not be at least 10% lighter, or the clip is a skipped kind |

## Questions

- **Does Smally upload my iPhone video?** No. Smally for Mac compresses on your Mac, and your files never leave it.
- **Can it shrink a 4K iPhone video?** Yes. The copy is H.264 at up to 1080p and 30 frames a second, made for chat and social. A 4K clip becomes a 1080p copy.
- **What happens to a slow-motion clip?** Smally leaves it as it is and the row says why: "This is a slow-motion clip. Smally would play it at normal speed, so it was left as it is." The copy of any other video has at most 30 frames a second.
- **Does it keep the HDR look?** The HDR an iPhone records (HLG) is converted so the colours look right on any screen. HDR10 and Dolby Vision profile 5 videos are skipped, and the row says why.
- **Will the copy fit WhatsApp or my email limit?** Smally promises no size. A copy is kept only when it is at least 10% lighter than the original, and the row shows the new size before you save.
- **Why was my video skipped?** Protected files, slow motion, HDR10 and Dolby Vision profile 5, other wide-colour video and clips with more than one video track are skipped, and the row says why.

## More

- [Compress video](https://meetsmally.com/compress-video/)
- [Compress MOV](https://meetsmally.com/compress-mov/)
- [HEIC to JPG](https://meetsmally.com/heic-to-jpg/)

---

Smally for Mac. Smally for Mac 0.16.0 (build 35, beta) needs Apple silicon and macOS 26 or later; download: https://downloads.meetsmally.com/latest. Files are never uploaded. Source of truth: https://meetsmally.com/compress-iphone-video/