You can make videos on your Pixel phone in higher quality and with better lighting, colours and details. This feature is only available on Pixel 8 Pro.
To back up and process videos, Video Boost requires Google Photos. Learn how to get started with Google Photos.
Learn how to use Video Boost
Step 1: Turn on Video Boost and record a video- Open your Google Camera app
.
- If you're in Photo mode
, switch to Video mode
.
- If you're in Photo mode
- Tap Video settings
or swipe up.
- Turn on Video Boost
.
- When you use Video Boost for the first time, the default setting is 4K resolution, SDR (10-bit HDR is off) and at 30 frames per second (FPS). If you prefer, you can change these settings.
- To confirm that Video Boost is turned on, you'll see this icon in the upper left corner of the viewfinder:
- Record a video.
- The maximum recording limit when you use Video Boost is 10 minutes. If you're low on storage space, you'll get a warning and the recording will stop.
.
, switch to Video mode 
.
or swipe up.Immediately after you record a video, you can watch, edit or share the initial video in Google Photos. The initial video will be 1080p, 30 frames per second and in SDR.
To watch the initial video, from your Pixel Camera app, tap Preview.
If you have backup turned on, your video will automatically be backed up and boosted on the cloud. If you do not have backup turned on, you can back up the specific video manually and have that video boosted.
Tip: If you do not connect to the Internet and back up your temporary video, your temporary video won't be boosted. Learn how to back up photos and videos.After a while, the boosted video is ready and a notification will be sent.
- To receive notifications, turn on notifications for Google Photos.
- Upload and processing time depends on the size of the video and your Internet connection speed.
In Google Photos, you can watch both the initial and boosted video by tapping on the video thumbnails.
- The boosted video will have this icon:
- For the best playback quality, download the boosted video if it hasn't been downloaded on your device yet.
- The boosted video will be downloaded to your device automatically when you're connected to Wi-Fi for the best viewing quality experience.
Learn how Video Boost stores files
When you record a video, your phone stores it as a temporary video file. Video Boost uses this file to make a boosted video. The file size can vary based on the scene that you record, resolution and frame rate.
Tips:
- While the temporary video file is still being boosted, it doesn't use up your Google Photos storage space in the cloud. However, you may notice that the temporary file can take up available storage space on your phone.
- To save space, your phone deletes the temporary file automatically once your boosted video is ready.
- If you move the temporary file from its original location on your device, the file may not be deleted automatically.
To delete the file manually before your boosted video replaces it:
- On your phone, open the Google Photos app
.
- Tap the video in your gallery.
- Tap the thumbnail for the temporary file.
- This file is not the boosted video, as it is not playable.
- At the bottom, tap Delete
.
.
.Learn how much data Video Boost uses
Video Boost follows the backup settings that you've set in Google Photos. If you've set Google Photos to allow backup only on Wi-Fi, Video Boost does not upload or download using mobile data.