You move photos from an iPhone to a Windows computer and some show as blank squares, or a video plays sound without a picture. Nothing is broken. It is a mismatch between the formats Apple uses and the formats Windows expects.
Why HEIC photos will not open
iPhones save photos as HEIC by default because the files are about half the size of a JPG. Many Windows computers, older programs and web forms cannot read HEIC without an extra add-on. When they cannot, you see an error, a blank thumbnail or the message that the file type is not supported.
The quick fix: convert
Drop the photos onto our HEIC to JPG page. You do not need to install anything: the conversion happens in your browser, and nothing is uploaded. You get ordinary JPG files that open everywhere. If you want to edit the photo in a program that works best with lossless files, HEIC to PNG gives you PNG files instead, which are larger.
Videos that play with no picture
Recent iPhones can record video in HEVC, a modern, efficient format. Some Windows computers can play the sound but cannot decode HEVC, so you get sound with a black screen. Our MOV to MP4 page offers Most compatible, which remakes the picture in H.264 so that it plays on almost every device. It takes longer than the Fast choice and works best in Chrome or Edge. Fast only changes the wrapper, so an HEVC video stays HEVC.
Stop the problem at the source
You can tell your iPhone to make files that everyone can open. For photos, open Settings, then Camera, then Formats, and choose Most Compatible. New photos are saved as JPG. For video, in the same menu, choose Most Compatible to record in H.264. Files will be larger, so you use more storage, but you will not need to convert anything again.
Another setting to know about is in Photos: under Transfer to Mac or PC, choosing Automatic converts photos to a compatible format when you copy them over a cable.
Moving files without losing anything
Whichever way you transfer, by cable, a cloud service or email, keep the originals until you have checked the copies open properly. Email and some messaging services shrink photos, so if you want the full-size photo to arrive, use a cable, a shared album link or a file transfer. Live Photos are saved as a still picture and a short clip; when converted, only the still is kept.
Quick reference
A short list to keep in mind:
- Photo will not open: convert HEIC to JPG.
- Video has sound but no picture: convert with Most compatible.
- Form says wrong file type: convert to JPG, and check the size limit too.
- Want to stop it happening: set the iPhone camera to Most Compatible.