Slow Upload?

Blissful1 · Blissful1 #1 (**permalink**)

04-14-2010, 11:22 PM

Hi Everyone,

First time poster

I'm new to IMovie so please bear with me!

I have a large amount of video to upload from our camcorder. When I started the process in IMovie I was amazed at how slow the upload is. It's uploading in slower than real time. Is this normal or am I missing a step?

The process seems rather painful!!

My camcorder is a Sony HDR-XR520.

Thanks for your help!

Nethfel · Nethfel #2 (**permalink**)

04-15-2010, 07:44 AM

A bit of information about your Mac would be helpful - what model / cpu / gpu / version osx do you have? as well as what settings you've selected for your camera - most specifically the quality setting?

Blissful1 · Blissful1 #3 (**permalink**)

04-15-2010, 10:55 AM

I'm using a Macbook but I also have an IMac that I can use.

Mac OS x 10.6.2
Is that the info you need?
As far as the camera settings...
It takes me about 30 minutes to generate the thumbnails (granted, I have a lot of video to upload).
Once i've done that and I select a specific clip to upload and it prompts me to select a location and size. I select:

1080i Video as Large

From there it uploads in slightly slower than real time.

Any thoughts? Sorry if I've missed anything!

Nethfel · Nethfel #4 (**permalink**)

04-15-2010, 01:56 PM

Well, the amount of RAM and CPU power would be helpful as well

(ie: go to the Apple -> About This Mac and it should tell you the processor and the memory)

It will take a while depending on how much video you have to index and depending on the speed of the connection, the speed of the CPU and the amount of RAM will all directly impact how long it will take.

You see, to use the video from that camera, which is recorded in AVCHD, it needs to be transcoded into a more edit-friendly format - which for iMovie is Apple Intermediate Codec (AIC). Transcoding video does take time, the longer the movie and the larger the original file, the longer it will take to transcode. Your camcorder has a variety of settings with which to record video, the highest setting, on average (based upon Sonys specs) will allow for 1750 minutes to be stored on the 240 gig internal drive, that means for every minute of video it's taking ~137mbyte (could be more or less depending on various things that make up the subject of the video, etc.) and that will take time to transfer and convert from AVCHD to AIC. In theory it should be quicker to transfer footage, but sometimes it's not...

xstep · xstep #5 (**permalink**)

04-15-2010, 02:37 PM

It sounds like it is acting normally.

It's a good bet you are talking about iMovie 08 or 09, so I'll assume that.

iMovie converts the file to another format (that is optimized for editing) AND also creates thumbnails so that you can quickly review your content. There isn't magic to this, it takes time.

Blissful1 · Blissful1 #6 (**permalink**)

04-15-2010, 03:10 PM

Thanks everyone!

Sounds like I need to be more patient

As far as my MacBook info (sorry...hehe...I'm a recent Apple convert...still a bit clueless)

Processor: 2.16 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
Memory: 2 GB 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM

Maybe i'll try it on my IMac?

Thanks again...very helpful

Nethfel #2 (permalink)
Member Since: Feb 25, 2009 Posts: 2,084 Mac Specs: 2012 Non-retina MBP, 2.6GHz i7, 8GB RAM, Antiglare Screen	04-15-2010, 07:44 AM A bit of information about your Mac would be helpful - what model / cpu / gpu / version osx do you have? as well as what settings you've selected for your camera - most specifically the quality setting? My Macs: 2012 Non-Retina 15" MBP; Mac mini G4, 1.25 GHz, 512m ram (server); Late 2011 11" MBA, 1.8GHz i7, 4Gig Ram, 256Gig SSD, HD3000; Powerbook 12" G4 1.33GHz running Debian as a server; Apple TV (1080p version) Last edited by Nethfel; 04-15-2010 at 07:51 AM.
	QUOTE Thanks

Nethfel #4 (permalink)
Member Since: Feb 25, 2009 Posts: 2,084 Mac Specs: 2012 Non-retina MBP, 2.6GHz i7, 8GB RAM, Antiglare Screen	04-15-2010, 01:56 PM Well, the amount of RAM and CPU power would be helpful as well (ie: go to the Apple -> About This Mac and it should tell you the processor and the memory) It will take a while depending on how much video you have to index and depending on the speed of the connection, the speed of the CPU and the amount of RAM will all directly impact how long it will take. You see, to use the video from that camera, which is recorded in AVCHD, it needs to be transcoded into a more edit-friendly format - which for iMovie is Apple Intermediate Codec (AIC). Transcoding video does take time, the longer the movie and the larger the original file, the longer it will take to transcode. Your camcorder has a variety of settings with which to record video, the highest setting, on average (based upon Sonys specs) will allow for 1750 minutes to be stored on the 240 gig internal drive, that means for every minute of video it's taking ~137mbyte (could be more or less depending on various things that make up the subject of the video, etc.) and that will take time to transfer and convert from AVCHD to AIC. In theory it should be quicker to transfer footage, but sometimes it's not... My Macs: 2012 Non-Retina 15" MBP; Mac mini G4, 1.25 GHz, 512m ram (server); Late 2011 11" MBA, 1.8GHz i7, 4Gig Ram, 256Gig SSD, HD3000; Powerbook 12" G4 1.33GHz running Debian as a server; Apple TV (1080p version)
	QUOTE Thanks

xstep #5 (permalink)
Member Since: Jun 25, 2005 Location: On the road Posts: 3,231 Mac Specs: 2011 MBP, i7, 16GB RAM, MBP 2.16Ghz Core Duo, 2GB ram, Dual 867Mhz MDD, 1.75GB ram, ATI 9800 Pro vid	04-15-2010, 02:37 PM It sounds like it is acting normally. It's a good bet you are talking about iMovie 08 or 09, so I'll assume that. iMovie converts the file to another format (that is optimized for editing) AND also creates thumbnails so that you can quickly review your content. There isn't magic to this, it takes time. CameraTime - Time lapse photography for novice and advanced users. When asking questions, post the version of your software. You'll receive better answers. Please post your results to the thread as it is good feedback.
	QUOTE Thanks

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
slow upload speeds with iDisk using Transmit software	nick_harambee	OS X - Apps and Games	1	08-27-2009 10:24 AM
Searching FTP client that can limit the upload speed	supra2800	OS X - Apps and Games	0	05-20-2007 03:43 PM
SLOW file transfer on home network.	Yianni1066	Internet, Networking, and Wireless	0	11-05-2006 11:09 PM
PowerBook G4 is slow on download and fast on upload. Help!!	mblphnlvr	Switcher Hangout	7	05-17-2005 02:18 PM
Slow OS X ... Help please !!	etes	Switcher Hangout	13	04-10-2005 07:06 PM

Slow Upload?

Internet Services

Web Development

Digital Marketing

Consumer Tech

Blissful1 #1 (permalink)
Member Since: Apr 14, 2010 Posts: 3	04-14-2010, 11:22 PM Hi Everyone, First time poster I'm new to IMovie so please bear with me! I have a large amount of video to upload from our camcorder. When I started the process in IMovie I was amazed at how slow the upload is. It's uploading in slower than real time. Is this normal or am I missing a step? The process seems rather painful!! My camcorder is a Sony HDR-XR520. Thanks for your help!
	QUOTE Thanks

Blissful1 #6 (permalink)
Member Since: Apr 14, 2010 Posts: 3	04-15-2010, 03:10 PM Thanks everyone! Sounds like I need to be more patient As far as my MacBook info (sorry...hehe...I'm a recent Apple convert...still a bit clueless) Processor: 2.16 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Memory: 2 GB 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM Maybe i'll try it on my IMac? Thanks again...very helpful
	QUOTE Thanks

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)