ISight Terrible Video Quality

I recently picked up an iSight camera for my 2012 model Mac Mini, which is running Mountain Lion. The quality of the video is terrible, and I'm wondering if this is just a case of this being an old product that's not up to today's standards, or if there's something I can do to improve it.
The video image refreshes at a rate of about once every 3 seconds, and the picture quality looks like something from video chat circa 1998. The only thing I found in the iSight manual about choppy video was to lower the MBPS if your internet connection is slow. I tested my internet speed this morning and it's at a perfectly acceptable 10.5 mbps. But nonetheless I tried every speed setting available on the Message video preferences and there was no change.
The iSight is connected to my firewire port via a 400/800 adapter, IEEE1394A 1394B.
Thank you.

Your old iSight may have problems. Here are the things I know you can try:
(0) Use good (bright) lighting and take your time while starting iSight tests.
(1) How to test external iSight to ensure it is functional.
Be sure to test on a different network and another Mac.
(2) Apple's How to Troubleshoot iSight. Be sure to test more than one Apple camera app
in more than one user account if your trouble continues.
(3) Apple's iSight Service FAQs includes info about where to get external iSight serviced.
(4) Try a different Firewire cable and / or adapter unless you know yours are good.

Similar Messages

Terrible Video Quality? HELP

Does anyone know why when I play videos over the Iphone the quality ***** and it is very laggy/blurry with pink and green lines at the beginning? Sometimes it will play them correctly, but most of the time it will not! The quality is great on Itunes and plays just fine. On the Iphone however the quality is terrible for short and long videos. I just downloaded a music video today and the quality is terrible on the Iphone, in Itunes it is excellent. Anyone have any suggestions? Yes I have the new update and I just restored my phone no fix...
Thank, You

I'm having the same problem just started tonight. Utube and all QuickTime video on the apple site as well.
Message was edited by: sheila&bob

IPhone 5 YouTube App Video Quality on LTE

Hello,
I am new to this community and hopefully my post will receive some good information, feedback, suggestions and so forth. Well I have an iPhone 5 and when I use LTE and try to watch a youtube video on the app I have terrible video quality. I have speeds varying from 9 mbps or higher at times. Yet, when I use my WiFi at home for verizon I receive great video play back despite slower speeds (3-6 mbps). I would appreciate any information you guys may relay to me and/or experiences you have with the app through our wonderful carrier
Thank you for your time!

I'm having the same problem with my iPhone 5
And I have sprint LTE
I don't know why when I'm at home video quality is good on my wifi but when I'm on the go video quality is terrible on this YouTube app
My iPhone 4 had better quality with the old YouTube app
Please fix this apple!

Isight video quality?

can you improve this/and or the settings of isight so it looks better?
I've had a little play around with isight but whenever I bring it up through imovie it just looks really bad, the light doesn't get picked up well at all and it just looks like I'm using a pretty naff camera. Was just wondering if this could be fixed/changed at all as I know that looking on YouTube people use their isight and the video quality looks really good
I have a late 2008 aluminum Macbook if that helps.
Thanks

Lights.
And more lights.
Daylight is best (gives natural colors).

I chat 4 video quality is terrible!

Can someone please help!I just switched over from a pc to macbook mac ox 10.5.1 expecting great video quality with i chat or skype but instead had to deal with error 8 messages in i chat after all the headaches of opening ports in my router, the audio video is working but the video quality is very bad my own preview is clear and my boyfriend sees me clear,but the image I get of him is very pixellated. I've set the bandwidth to none and speed to 1.5 in quicktime, my average speedtest results are 6500 downloads and 400 uploads. connection doctor average is usually about 350-400 framerate 9 -10 for both local and his connection. We both using have tried connecting directly to the modem, however I still get poor image. He is also using a mac ox 10.5.1 i chat 4 same machine except for different graphic card I have a gma x3100 144 mb while he has the gma 940 4mb can this have something to do with it ?

Who is your ISP ?
If Comcast, Road Runner or Verizon FiOS then set the Bandwidth to 500
9:05 PM Sunday; November 18, 2007

Terrible iChat video quality. What gives?

My brother and I are trying to use iChat video. We both have an iMac, his is newer than mine, but we both have the same OS. On both ends the video quality is very poor and the audio is bad (hearing every other word). We both have high speed internet, I have cable he has DSL. We tried limiting the bandwidth to no avail. Any suggestions?
Thanks!

Also both of you should open the Connection Doctor (iChat Video menu) during a chat and tell us what Speeds (Frame and Bit Rate) you see.
You should get at least 15fps and have a speed in Bit rate of well over 100kbps (up to somewhere over 500kbps depending on your Internet speeds at both ends).
200-300 is common. 500+ is not unusual.
8:24 PM Tuesday; April 28, 2009

Poor video quality, pixelation, flickering on moving subjects in frame

I made a quicktime movie using File>Export>Quicktime Conversion... in FCP using H.264 compression codec with best video quality and 16-bit audio. video was originally captured in miniDV. Self contianed movie was made and looked pretty good in Quicktime, though the edges of moving subjects in frame did have small wavy lines (I assume from interpolation of DV?). Anyway it was acceptable to me (but if there is a fix please advise as I figured this was endemic to miniDV itself.)
Then I created a DVD in iDVD 6.0.3 with several slide shows and two relatively short movies (12-14 minutes in length each). The edges of moving subjects in frame (i.e. persons walking into the frame) now have large square pixelations sort of like this --->( |-|_|-|). At anyrate, the fine wavy lines from the QT movie have become much worse when there is movement, and I'm not talking speed, just any movement like a hand moving in the frame, etc. Otherwise the quality of the video is comparible to the exported movie from FCP.
Does anyone have suggestions for how to eliminate this problem?
thanks!
imac intel core duo 2.16GHz, Superdrive 8x Mac OS X (10.4.9) 3 GB ram

the edges of moving subjects in frame did have small wavy lines
That's normal interlacing. You usually want to preserve those comb lines if your target is TV display which will hide them and use them to make smoother motion.
http://www.sjoki.uta.fi/~shmhav/SVCDon_aMacintosh.html#interlacing
But if your target is a computer display, then you usually want to deinterlace them off because they look ugly on a PC monitor.
originally captured in miniDV ... H.264 ... Then I created a DVD in iDVD 6.0.3
No! You should not convert the original DV to H.264 if your final target is a video-DVD!
Just keep it as DV. And take care that your FCP export to DV is bottom field first field dominance because otherwise you get terrible zigzag movement artifacts! ...I don't have FCP so I can't give you more advice on that (mini-DV ->iMovie ->iDVD handle all this automatically).

Video Quality is Degrading

I frequently iChat with my son in another state. Neither of us has changed any settings, but lately the video quality on his end has degraded. Specifically, the lighting behind him has gotten brighter, as if the camera aperture has widened. Is it possible that some light sensor is wearing out? Is there anything we can do (short of changing the entire room configuration to eliminate any light source behind him) to fix this?

badfan wrote:
I frequently iChat with my son in another state. Neither of us has changed any settings, but lately the video quality on his end has degraded. Specifically, the lighting behind him has gotten brighter, as if the camera aperture has widened. Is it possible that some light sensor is wearing out?
I do not think this is possible if he is using a built-in iSight. Lighting for built-in iSight is controlled by software rather than an adjustable camera aperture. However, an Apple-Authorized Service Provider has the necessary tools, test equipment, and technical data needed to check for possible sensor problems.
Your son should test whether other users notice the same problem in his iChat video. If others do not see the same problem you note, the trouble may be at your end.
If the problem is noted by everyone who does video iChat with your son, consider whether the changing light might be due to seasonal changes in the room your son uses. If that is a possibility, and if your son cannot reduce the amount of light coming in through doors or windows, he can try to make his room more evenly lighted by adding more light to the room.
Is there anything we can do (short of changing the entire room configuration to eliminate any light source behind him) to fix this?
(1) A single good light source in a well-lit room gives the picture in iChat. For more info, see:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3097
(2) Your son can test his iSight to see if it needs service by using all relevant suggestions here:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2090
Be sure to check more than one app in more than one user account.
(3) iChat is part of Mac OS X. Consider the possibility that system softwares needs to be updated. Both of you should be using the latest available software for the OS X version you use.
I see your posted info shows that you are using Mac OS X (10.4.9). Unless you have complelling reason for doing so, you should update to the latest version of Tiger to obtain its many improvements. Which you use depends on the processor in your iMac:
For iNtel Mac: http://support.apple.com/kb/DL172
For PPC iMac: http://support.apple.com/kb/DL170
If your son uses Leopard (10.5.x), use this combo updater:
http://support.apple.com/kb/DL866
If your son uses Snow Leopard (10.6.x), use this combo updater:
http://support.apple.com/kb/DL1048
Regardless of which combo update you or your son apply, use the Mac's Disk Utility to repair permissions immediately *before _and again_ after* applying the update.
EZ Jim
Mac Pro Quad Core (Early 2009) 2.93Ghz w/Mac OS X (10.6.4) MacBook Pro (13 inch, Mid 2009) 2.26GHz (10.6.4)
LED Cinema Display G4 PowerBook 1.67GHz (10.4.11) iBookSE 366MHz (10.3.9) External iSight

Video quality - is my pod sick :(

I think Ive noticed, and this is only after shutting off the "Surface" episode I bought from Itunes, that the video quality just stinks. I couldnt even finish because the pixels and terrible gradients were killin me. I went back to my "Lost" episodes and dont know if im just seeing things or my ipod video is getting worse.? DOES anyone else have this pixey pod problem??
jnet

Welcome to Apple Discussions!
Is this only the Surface episode? If the Lost episodes are fine, then I would say it is a problem with the file.
Email Apple using the form at the bottom of the following page...
http://www.apple.com/support/itunes/musicstore/video/
btabz

Improving Video Quality?

Video quality doesn't appear as good as it did when Steve demonstrated it some time ago when more than two are video chatting. I'm using a PowerMac G5 QUAD with iSight camera and invite the first person on my home network via Bonjour everything looks good, but when I invite the second person on my home network via Bonjour, both invitees pictures go blury. The other two machines are a Core 2 Duo iMac and a Core 2 Duo MacBook with built in cameras. All three machines are connected to the LAN at 1000 Base T speeds and all three are connected to the same Gigabit switch (which is a LinkSys Gigabit switch). All three have Quicktime Streaming configured for 1.5 Mbps/T1/LAN. iChat is configured to not limit the bandwith.
I would have expected a clear picture when my two guests are connected, but as soon as the second guest connects, the two guest pictures become blury. They also report the same thing. Is there anything else I can do to improve the picture quality? How did Steve obtain such good quality, does anyone know?
Thanks

Hi Dnar,
Do you know what actual throughput you are getting ?
There might (I stress might) be some improvement over a local network with the very top Quicktime setting but it does seem this is not stable enough for Internet connections
3:33 PM Saturday; April 21, 2007

How do I get good video quality?

I can't seem to get more then 20 fps and not so hot video out of iChat AV. With what should be pretty good connections, I still get stopping or pixelation at times, so I've been trying to isolate the issue.
Conferencing over an airport on an in-house system for a test, with 2.4 megs of pipe (showing in Connection Doctor; other tests show 10 megs up and down) using either iSight or a DV camera, I get 20 fps, no more. OS 10.5.3 on both sides, Quicktime 7.5 on both sides. Intel Duo 2Ghz with 1 Ghz ram on one side, G5 with 5 gigs of ram on the other. One way video chat. No other apps running. No other traffic on the Airport.
We're trying to use this for student "live shots" over the internet. The quality of the video frankly used to be a lot higher with earlier versions.
I don't get it. If it is possible to get 640 X 480, 30 fps out of this, I can't figure it out. Hopefully, one of you will know how to do it. Do I need to install Quicktime Pro? Is there some magic button or setting somewhere? (yes, i is set on LAN) Do I use another application that has low latency like iChat AV but better video quality? Is there an appliance that will do this better? Is there a way to set up a point to point conference? (Quicktime Broadcaster allows this, but has long latency... too long to be usable for our purposes.)
So I'm not getting why I can't do this. Please let me know if you have any ideas.

Ralph,
Thanks. I've increased the RAM size on both sides, have a blazing fast connection, and use prosumer cameras with good glass and lighting. The boxes on both ends are dedicated to this with nothing else running. I've even met with our campus IT lines to make sure there are blocks or plugs on ports. No good.
I guess its in the CPU or something. It's a bit annoying. I'm a really big fan of iChat. We've used it for "live shots" on election night and as broadband field "live shots" over a 3G telephony connection and wireless broadband. Nothing else we've found is better. It just seems to handle video quality less well in the last couple of versions.
If anyone knows the magic formula.... X- machine, X-plug in, X-external box, X-side processor, I'm interested.
Thanks for your suggestions.
David

Video quality difficulties with Vimeo and Youtube sites and with smart phone

Ever since the Vimeo and Youtube sites have changed, it has been pretty difficult to get the video quality I had before. I'm using Final Cut Express to edit, Quicktime Player to resize the video to 640x480 (is too wide when saving FCE project as Quicktime movie), and Jes Deinterlacer to remove all of the jaggies that the original deinterlacing on FCE doesn't fully do (skateboarding video). I'm aware Final Cut Express 4 is a discontinued product, and Apple support over the phone can't help me. The quality is TERRIBLE on my smart phone, and used to be really good before the site changed. The Vimeo app played my videos very clear. I'm using a MyTouch smart phone. I want to know if the quality being bad on mobile is because of the sites being changed, and if there is anything I can do to get the quality I want. I've worked on this the past three weeks, and this is my final option, so any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. Here are the steps I'm using to export (still trying more export options in Jes Deinterlacer).
Step 1: In FCE, click "File", "Export", "Quicktime Movie". In "Include:", choose "Audio and Video", "All Markers" for "Markers:", and check box "Make Movie Self-Contained".
Step 2: Open file in QT Player. Click "Window" (at the top between "View" and "Help"), and choose "Show Movie Properties". Click "Video Track", and click "Visual Settings". Change the dimensions (which are supposed to be 720x480 4:3 but the video is stretched). Enter "640 x 480" for "Scaled Size:", then same with "Offset:" Keep "Preserve Aspect Ratio" unchecked, then when finished entering numbers check it (doesn't let you uncheck it which would be best). Check the "High Quality" box if it hasn't already been checked. Close the window, and click "File", and then "Save".
Step 3: Open file in Jes Deinterlacer. In "Input", check box "Reinterlace Chroma", choose "Video range", and check "Remove Jaggies". For "Project", choose "Deinterlace" and "Use Bottom Field". Check "Adaptive", "Local", and "Filter Chroma". In "Output", choose "Video range". Choose "Export", and "Mpeg-4". For "File Format:" choose "MP4", for "Video Format:" choose "H.264", and for "Data Rate:" enter "2000" for "kbits/sec". Leave "Optimized for:" "Download" as is. Choose "640x480 VGA" for "Image Size:", and "Current" for "Frame Rate:". For "Key Frame:" choose "Every", and enter "24" for "frames". Click "Video Options". Leave the "Main" box checked, and check "Baseline" for "Restrict Profile(s) to:". Choose "Best Quality (Multi-pass)" for "Encoding Mode:". Click "Ok". Click "Audio" (since done with "Video"). For "Audio Format:" choose "AAC-LC (Music), for "Data Rate:" choose "320 kbps", for "Channels:" leave as "Stereo", for "Output Sample Rate:" choose "44.100 kHz", and for "Encoding Quality:" choose "Best". Click "Ok" (leave "Streaming" alone).

First, I would do a Search on this forum for "FRAPS." There are several articles with comments on the best workflow and also settings for Import and for Export.
Next, YouTube is trobulesome. First, they re-encode everything and their specs seem to change weekly. It's tough to find out what they want on any given day. I'd go to their site and get the very latest instructions and attempt to duplicate those perfectly, knowing that they might be different tomorrow.
Good luck with this one, and good luck with the FRAPS footage.
Hunt

Bad video quality over WiFi?

iChat seems to be trying to out-think me by lowering iChat video quality when it's on WiFi, but using great video when I'm on ethernet. This seems silly, since I have great WiFi connectivity, but I can't seem to disable the behavior. Does anyone know how to disable iChat's WiFi preferences?
More details:
I'm on an 802.11g WiFi network through an AEBS with "full bars" and the quality looks terrible over Bonjour to someone else on the LAN (wired or wireless). As soon as I disable AirPort and plug in to wired Ethernet, making no other changes other than restarting iChat, the quality looks fantastic.
My WiFi speed is always in the tens of megabits per second, with ping latencies below 1ms to the other clients, so it should be plenty fast.
Ideas?

I have been using iChat exclusively over WiFi (Airport Extreme) from my iMac, and via Ethernet and WiFi from my Powerbook. I have not had any quality issues when connecting in this manner. Connections within my local network from WiFi to WiFi, as well as to outside connections over Broadband have all been of very good quality. Now if I can just get it all working again following the upgrade to Leopard 10.5.1.
FYI: I have even used iChat AV on Tiger using DUN on my Treo650 (Sprint), which worked fine as well.

Freezing at Sign On and Diminished Video Quality

I'm having trouble with iChat. First, I seem to be getting a lot of freezing at sign-on. I can occasionally see the face of the person I'm connecting with - but then I get an error drop down window from Apple asking if I want to send a report. When I am able to connect, the video quality is terribly distorted.
I have iChat version 5.0. I have set my bandwidth at 200 kbps. I'm running Snow Leopard and use AirPort.
I seemed to have had a decent connect last week, but it has gotten steadily worse in the past few days. Does anyone have any fixes they can recommend? Thanks!

Hi,
Manually go to your Home Folder/Library/Preferences as Spotlight does not report on this folder.
Also delete com.apple.iChat.AIM.plist if it is an AIM/Apple Login
Or the one with Jabber in it if a Jabber Buddy list is the problem.
Do not delete this with the one mention by Carolyn as that will cause the Start Up Screens to Appear again.
8:36 PM Tuesday; September 8, 2009

Bad Video Quality - Help This Rookie

Hi - Thanks in advance for your help. I have some good MPEG4 video quality and when I watch it directly (through Quicktime) it looks great. My problem is that when I import it in to iMovie, it takes a serious video quality hit and looks terrible. Am I doing something wrong? Is there a better way to import it so that I dont lose the video quality?

Howie,
I've been importing video into iMovie from old VHS tapes and DV. Sometimes it seems as though iMovie's quality is lower than what's on tape. Its possible that the preview/edit is lower quality for performance reasons?
Try rendering a 5 minute clip to your final output and check the resulting quality.
-Miles

ISight Terrible Video Quality

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for