Why Use a Reader?
Readers deliver peak transfer speeds and zero drone battery drain. They also reduce connection quirks compared to wireless transfers. For travel, a tiny USB‑C reader is a must‑carry.
Folder Strategy That Scales
- On My iPhone → Videos → DJI → YYYY‑MM‑DD → Flight‑01
- Tag stars in DJI Fly and copy those first for faster culling.
- Keep LUTs, music, and exports in separate folders to stay tidy.
Compression for a Lean Library
Use HEVCut after copy to shrink files 30–60% before adding them to Photos or iCloud Drive. Start with:
- 4K30 scenic: 20–35 Mbps
- 4K60 action: 35–50 Mbps
- Night scenes: +15% bitrate to avoid banding
Quality Checks
Preview a 10–20 second sample after compression. If you spot macroblocks in trees/water, bump bitrate slightly and re‑run the batch. Keep audio at AAC 48 kHz for broad compatibility.
Archiving Originals
If you plan a desktop edit later, park originals on an external SSD or iCloud Drive. Use compressed versions for day‑to‑day viewing and sharing on iPhone to keep storage usage low.