I don't really know how to word my question? Mavic cutting video clips short?

[biggins82786]

I am new to the drone world, DJI, Mavic Pro, etc. However, I am not new to video recording or cameras. I took the drone out to Savannah, Ga today and flew four batteries worth of flight and recorded just about all of it in 4K on a single 64gb SanDisk Extreme Plus card. My last battery, I started video recording when I lifted off and stopped recording when I landed. When I got home and looked at the video, the Mavic had cut the last batteries video clip in half, making it two separate video clips. I know for a fact I didn't press for it to stop recording and start back. Is this normal? Why would it do this? The total video for the whole day was ~16gb so it wasn't due to filling the card. Ideas? Thoughts? Something I don't know?

 

[Aerial-Pixel]

This is normal, each clip is limited to 4GB. You will just need to merge them in post.

 

[BigAl07]

I think the system keeps the files sizes down to a certain Max Size to system integrity.

 

[biggins82786]

This is normal, each clip is limited to 4GB. You will just need to merge them in post.

Good! That means nothing is wrong lol

Why does it do that?

 

[msinger]

the Mavic had cut the last batteries video clip in half, making it two separate video clips. I know for a fact I didn't press for it to stop recording and start back. Is this normal?

Yes. There is no way to prevent that from occurring once the video reaches about 4GB. You can join the video files using a video editor.

 

[Aerial-Pixel]

Good! That means nothing is wrong lol

Why does it do that?

One explanation (true or not) is the 30min limitation on devices (mostly cameras) that also record video is to prevent the devices from being classified as "videocameras". By doing so, avoiding the import tariff/duties reserved for video recording devices. 30 minutes at 1080p is approx. 4gb. The 4GB limitation also used to be from the FAT files system, but now there are new file systems that allow much larger files sizes like exFat and NTFS, but formatting your card in these formats doesn't eliminate the 4GB file size limitation.

 

[WithTheBirds]

One explanation (true or not) is the 30min limitation on devices (mostly cameras) that also record video is to prevent the devices from being classified as "videocameras". By doing so, avoiding the import tariff/duties reserved for video recording devices. 30 minutes at 1080p is approx. 4gb. The 4GB limitation also used to be from the FAT files system, but now there are new file systems that allow much larger files sizes like exFat and NTFS, but formatting your card in these formats doesn't eliminate the 4GB file size limitation.

Not true (seemingly an assumption that became internet law).

The Limitation is the the 32bit MP4 format- 2^32=4GB.

 

[Aerial-Pixel]

Not true (seemingly an assumption that became internet law).

The Limitation is the the 32bit MP4 format- 2^32=4GB.

I've always heard its a FAT32 issue. I export MP4's that are over 4GB all the time, but my PC's file system is NTFS. Camera makers, including DJI, stick to the 4GB file size for maximum compatibility of all file systems. There are a lot of references that explain it, but this one does it the best IMHO: Why Do GoPros Split Video Files Into Segments?

 

[WithTheBirds]

I had assumed the limitation to be 32 bit file system also however an MP4 file where the memory pointer addressing scheme is 32 bit has an identical limitation for practical reasons (regardless of the storage file system). You might be exporting 64 bit files but it seems our Mavics are writing 32 bit files.

 

[CyrusBlack]

This is normal, each clip is limited to 4GB. You will just need to merge them in post.

So I have a newbie question for you. If they auto stop at 4GB, does it auto start a new clip or do I have to re-press the record button? The reason I ask is because many times I cannot see my iPhone screen because of sun glare on my MA.

 

[RedSoxFan42]

So I have a newbie question for you. If they auto stop at 4GB, does it auto start a new clip or do I have to re-press the record button? The reason I ask is because many times I cannot see my iPhone screen because of sun glare on my MA.

It will continue recording and you won't lose any frames. Plus, when you go to edit it, unless you have an unusually fast computer, you will find trying to edit a 16gb 4k video will be very slow. I have a Lenovo laptop, with an Intel I7 processer and 16GB of RAM and it's takes along time to edit and render videos. Welcome to the forum and enjoy your new adventure.

 

[CyrusBlack]

Thank you for your reply. I will be editing in iMovie to start with until I get better than probably going to FC Pro.
Thanks - John
Life Long Yankee Fan ;-)

 

[GGehret]

I am new to the drone world, DJI, Mavic Pro, etc. However, I am not new to video recording or cameras. I took the drone out to Savannah, Ga today and flew four batteries worth of flight and recorded just about all of it in 4K on a single 64gb SanDisk Extreme Plus card. My last battery, I started video recording when I lifted off and stopped recording when I landed. When I got home and looked at the video, the Mavic had cut the last batteries video clip in half, making it two separate video clips. I know for a fact I didn't press for it to stop recording and start back. Is this normal? Why would it do this? The total video for the whole day was ~16gb so it wasn't due to filling the card. Ideas? Thoughts? Something I don't know?

As far as I know, from my own experience, the clips only record somewhere in the middle of 4-5 minutes at a time. THey automatically start up again, and as stated by another poster, you just have to string them together in your editing software. They then look seamless.

 

[passedpawn]

Not true (seemingly an assumption that became internet law).

The Limitation is the the 32bit MP4 format- 2^32=4GB.

I've got MP4 files larger than that. They play fine. I'd guess that they split due to the FAT32 limitation, which is definitely 4GB.

 

[Kilrah]

Most cameras always produce <4GB files so they don't behave differently based on the card format, i.e. even if you insert an ExFAT card where they technically could make large files they don't.
Since there is no real drawback to it there's no reason to change that so nobody bothers.

 

[Milo187]

I am new to the drone world, DJI, Mavic Pro, etc. However, I am not new to video recording or cameras. I took the drone out to Savannah, Ga today and flew four batteries worth of flight and recorded just about all of it in 4K on a single 64gb SanDisk Extreme Plus card. My last battery, I started video recording when I lifted off and stopped recording when I landed. When I got home and looked at the video, the Mavic had cut the last batteries video clip in half, making it two separate video clips. I know for a fact I didn't press for it to stop recording and start back. Is this normal? Why would it do this? The total video for the whole day was ~16gb so it wasn't due to filling the card. Ideas? Thoughts? Something I don't know?

I’ve seen this problem before. One time reformatting the card in the bird fixed an issue where after a few seconds of recording it would stop. Another was a defective card which SanDisk replaced through lifetime warranty.
I do know that new files will be created around the 4 minute mark of continuous recording which is normal in my experience.