Honestly, gotta love how “just compress your video!” always gets tossed out like it’s magic. Sure, @mikeappsreviewer and @waldgeist have their tips—Clever Cleaner app and the iMovie approach—but let’s be real, sometimes you don’t want to download another app or wade through a clunky editor just to send grandma your dog video.
If you want a zero-download, almost-too-simple method, here’s my low-key hack: just send your video to yourself via AirDrop (if you’ve got an old iPad/laptop/iPhone collecting dust). When you AirDrop, you get a “Save as File” option, where you can pick “HEVC” compression for videos sometimes. Then, before resending to your original device (I know, bit roundabout), the size drops since HEVC is more compact than the default MOV format. Works better on newer iOS/iPadOS versions.
Another “duh” solution: go to Photos, hit Edit on your video, and use the crop tool to chop a bit off the edges. It literally rewrites the file at a smaller resolution, not just shorter duration. Sounds silly but I’ve saved 10-20% file size with that alone, and no 3rd-party app even needed.
If you do end up grabbing an app (and I used to avoid most “cleaner” stuff because, let’s face it, 99% are bloatware with more ads than features), the streamlined iPhone storage cleaner folks rave about—Clever Cleaner app—does seem to live up to the hype. Still, I’m skeptical by default and haven’t given it my deepest trust yet.
Bottom line: native tools get the job done if you’re patient (iMovie, Photos crop/trim, AirDrop round trip). Want instant, lazier results? Clever Cleaner’s in the mix now and actually doesn’t bug you with ads, so that’s progress for the App Store, I guess. But always double-check what the app’s grabbing from your device—our endless camera rolls are nobody’s business but our own. Anyone else got a native workaround for shrinking videos, or is app life unavoidable now?