Lag/Choppy Playback From Macbook to 4k Display

[Umichsmith]

Hello to all you Mavic Experts!

I am brand new to this forum, and a rookie drone pilot. Ultimately, I am looking to enjoy my drone footage as much as the rest of you, but am experiencing some issues when attempting to play back footage that I recorded. I have filmed the same shots using different modes as follows:

4k @ 60fps (auto settings)
4k HDR @ 30fps (auto settings)
4k @ 30fps (auto settings)
4k HDR @ 24fps (auto settings)
4k @ 30fps (manual shutter speed 1/60s)
4k @ 24fps (manual shutter speed 1/50s)

When viewing these images directly from the drone on my Macbook Pro (2020 version w/2.0 GHz quad-core processor, 16GB RAM), they all look great. When I connect the laptop to my 4K Samsung TV via HDMI 2.0 cable, every single video suddenly develops lag/chop when viewing.

Has anyone else seen this? I have no clue why it is doing this and am wondering if it is the actual footage that I recorded, as everything was smooth and I duplicated each shot to try and compare the footage.

Thanks in advance for your help and inputs, I greatly appreciate it.

Cheers,

Nick

 

[abruzzopat]

Your external 4K monitor probably requires a much higher data rate than the laptop screen. On the drone, are you encoding with H.264 or H.265? Also, are you copying the files to the local drive on the Mac first?

 

[Umichsmith]

Your external 4K monitor probably requires a much higher data rate than the laptop screen. On the drone, are you encoding with H.264 or H.265? Also, are you copying the files to the local drive on the Mac first?

Thanks for the reply, much appreciated. Currently set to H.265 on the encoding. I have transferred all files onto my MacBook Pro, and then after some quick color adjustments, was attempting to play them all and see which ones looked best. I have filmed multiple clips now in this manner, and each time I play them directly from the MacBook through the HDMI cable to the television monitor, they have a slight chop/stutter that occurs regularly throughout the playback process.

All video clips look great and play without issue on the MacBook Pro. Very confused on this one, so I do appreciate your help. I am wondering if this laptop, even as a newer 2020 model, can actually handle the 4k processing and playback when it counts.

Thanks,

Nick

 

[k9kids]

Can you put the video on a usb drive and plug directly to your smart tv to see if it plays.

 

[abruzzopat]

+1 k9kids

Also, try H.264 encoding (you will lose 4K/60 option) and see what you get.

 

[Umichsmith]

+1 k9kids

Also, try H.264 encoding (you will lose 4K/60 option) and see what you get.

Thanks - I will try both and see what happens.

 

[brett8883]

Hello to all you Mavic Experts!

I am brand new to this forum, and a rookie drone pilot. Ultimately, I am looking to enjoy my drone footage as much as the rest of you, but am experiencing some issues when attempting to play back footage that I recorded. I have filmed the same shots using different modes as follows:

4k @ 60fps (auto settings)
4k HDR @ 30fps (auto settings)
4k @ 30fps (auto settings)
4k HDR @ 24fps (auto settings)
4k @ 30fps (manual shutter speed 1/60s)
4k @ 24fps (manual shutter speed 1/50s)

When viewing these images directly from the drone on my Macbook Pro (2020 version w/2.0 GHz quad-core processor, 16GB RAM), they all look great. When I connect the laptop to my 4K Samsung TV via HDMI 2.0 cable, every single video suddenly develops lag/chop when viewing.

Has anyone else seen this? I have no clue why it is doing this and am wondering if it is the actual footage that I recorded, as everything was smooth and I duplicated each shot to try and compare the footage.

Thanks in advance for your help and inputs, I greatly appreciate it.

Cheers,

Nick

Probably your cable. Get a high speed HDMI with data.

 

[Umichsmith]

+1 k9kids

Also, try H.264 encoding (you will lose 4K/60 option) and see what you get.

I switched the encoding to H.264 and the videos still lag/stutter when playing on the TV. I uploaded the videos to YouTube in 4k format and they play fine on that same TV. Something is going on between playing them on the computer and transmitting that signal to the TV.

 

[Umichsmith]

Probably your cable. Get a high speed HDMI with data.

Thanks for the reply - great point, and I am using a high speed HDMI cable, same one I stream 4k service to the TV on from a 4k Roku device.

 

[Made2Phly]

Thanks for the reply - great point, and I am using a high speed HDMI cable, same one I stream 4k service to the TV on from a 4k Roku device.

For what it's worth, I have a pretty high powered 2018 MacBook Pro. All USB-C ports. I use a Smartlux hub adapter for HDMI out. Everything coming out of the MacBook to my 4K monitor/TV looks great. It is a 42 inch 4K monitor made by Onn. It was CHEAP -$109 at Walmart.

Maybe it's the adapter out of the Mac?

The Smarlux hub is here:

Amazon.com: SmartDelux USB C Hub Adapter - 8-in-1 USB-C Hub for MacBook Pro 2016/2018 13"&15" - Thunderbolt 3, 4K HDMI Port, USB-C Port, 3 USB 3.0 Ports, SD & Micro SD Card Readers - USB-C-Hub & Case: Computers & Accessories

Amazon.com: SmartDelux USB C Hub Adapter - 8-in-1 USB-C Hub for MacBook Pro 2016/2018 13"&15" - Thunderbolt 3, 4K HDMI Port, USB-C Port, 3 USB 3.0 Ports, SD & Micro SD Card Readers - USB-C-Hub & Case: Computers & Accessories

www.amazon.com

 

[z28lt1]

I'm not a MAC guy, but I have seen several people complain about hdmi out to 4k TVs on 2018 pros. Seems latency and jumpiness is common. I suspect @Santoli may be on to something as the MAC native HDMI can't output what the TV requires.

 

[Umichsmith]

I'm not a MAC guy, but I have seen several people complain about hdmi out to 4k TVs on 2018 pros. Seems latency and jumpiness is common. I suspect @Santoli may be on to something as the MAC native HDMI can't output what the TV requires.

I am beginning to believe that is true. I was able to upload sever 4k or HDR videos from the MacBook taken from my Mavic Air 2 to YouTube, and once they finished uploading, their 4k image was spot-on and had no latency or jumpiness.

Good to know that the videos coming from the Mavic are not the problem, and that any editing will successfully upload to YouTube or other media without issue.

Thanks for weighing in!!

 

[Umichsmith]

For what it's worth, I have a pretty high powered 2018 MacBook Pro. All USB-C ports. I use a Smartlux hub adapter for HDMI out. Everything coming out of the MacBook to my 4K monitor/TV looks great. It is a 42 inch 4K monitor made by Onn. It was CHEAP -$109 at Walmart.

Maybe it's the adapter out of the Mac?

The Smarlux hub is here:

Amazon.com: SmartDelux USB C Hub Adapter - 8-in-1 USB-C Hub for MacBook Pro 2016/2018 13"&15" - Thunderbolt 3, 4K HDMI Port, USB-C Port, 3 USB 3.0 Ports, SD & Micro SD Card Readers - USB-C-Hub & Case: Computers & Accessories

Amazon.com: SmartDelux USB C Hub Adapter - 8-in-1 USB-C Hub for MacBook Pro 2016/2018 13"&15" - Thunderbolt 3, 4K HDMI Port, USB-C Port, 3 USB 3.0 Ports, SD & Micro SD Card Readers - USB-C-Hub & Case: Computers & Accessories

www.amazon.com

Thanks for the tip. One more adapter I have to buy for my MacBook!!!