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How to Transfer and Share Videos From iPhone Camera Roll to Your PC

Transferring videos from your iPhone camera roll to your PC can be very useful for freeing up storage space on your phone or having backup copies of your videos on another device. While it may seem complicated, there are actually several easy ways to get videos off your iPhone and onto your Windows or Mac computer.

Using a USB Cable

The most straightforward way to transfer iPhone videos to your PC is by using a USB cable. Here’s a step-by-step guide:

  1. Connect your iPhone to your computer using the included USB cable. If prompted, unlock your iPhone and tap “Trust This Computer”.
  2. Open File Explorer on Windows or Finder on Mac. Your iPhone should appear as a device.
  3. Navigate to the DCIM > 100APPLE folder – this is where your iPhone camera roll is stored.
  4. Select the videos you want to transfer and copy them. On Windows, right click and select Copy; on Mac, you can just drag and drop them.
  5. Paste the videos into any folder on your computer.

The benefit of using a USB cable is that you get full resolution copies of the videos transferred. The only downside is that it can be slow to transfer many large videos this way.

Using AirDrop

AirDrop is an Apple wireless sharing protocol that lets you quickly send files between Apple devices. Here’s how to use AirDrop to transfer videos:

  1. On both devices, turn on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Also enable AirDrop under Control Center.
  2. On your iPhone, open the Photos app and select the videos to share. Tap the Share button.
  3. Under AirDrop, select your Mac/PC. Accept the transfer request on your computer.

AirDrop is fast and easy, but may compress videos during transfer. It also only works between Apple devices.

Using iCloud Photo Library

You can automatically sync all photos and videos between your iPhone and PC using iCloud Photo Library:

  1. On your iPhone, enable iCloud Photos under Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud.
  2. On your PC, install iCloud for Windows. Sign in with your Apple ID and enable iCloud Photos syncing.
  3. New photos/videos will now automatically transfer from your iPhone to your PC over Wi-Fi.

The benefit of iCloud Photo Library is that everything stays in sync automatically. But it counts against your iCloud storage quota.

Using Third-Party Apps

There are many great file transfer apps for iOS and Windows/Mac. Some top options include:

  • AnyTrans: Transfer videos easily over Wi-Fi or cellular data. Integrates nicely into Windows File Explorer.
  • iMazing: Allows full iPhone backups and has fast wired transfers. Useful extra features like HEIC conversion.
  • CopyTrans: Simple interface for transferring iPhone photos, videos, music and other content to your PC.

Third-party apps provide more flexibility compared to the built-in transfer methods. The only downside is most paid apps have ongoing subscription fees.

Sharing Videos After Transfer

Once videos are transferred from your iPhone to PC, there are several ways you can access and share them:

  • Play Videos in Media Apps: Use Windows Media Player or QuickTime Player to watch the videos.
  • View in File Explorer/Finder: Your transferred videos behave like any other files for easy organization.
  • Upload to YouTube: Share special moments with friends and family by uploading iPhone videos to YouTube.
  • Convert File Format: Use video converter software to change HEIC videos from iPhone into more compatible MP4 files.
  • Create Video Projects: Import your iPhone videos into video editing apps like Adobe Premiere to include in video projects.

So in summary, with the right tools it’s simple to get videos off your iPhone camera roll and onto your Windows PC or Mac. Whether you want to free up space on your iPhone or just have backup copies of videos, one of the transfer techniques above will work perfectly.

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