You are in the process of filming an important event, perhaps a concert or a children's party, and suddenly a frightening notification appears on the screen of your smartphone: “The maximum video size has been reached.” The recording ends and you are left with an incomplete video that cannot be continued. This is one of the most common and annoying problems that users of Androiddevices encounter when trying to record a long video in high definition.
Many people mistakenly believe that the problem lies in the lack of free space on the internal drive or memory card, but this is only one of the possible reasons. Most often, the limitation is due to the technical features of the file system that your device uses to store data. Understanding the nature of this limitation will allow you to avoid losing valuable frames in the future and correctly configure your smartphone for long-term recording.
In this article we will look in detail at why the operating system Android imposes limits on the size of a single video file, how the file system FAT32 affects this process, and what ways there are to bypass this limitation without losing recording quality.
Technical reasons for limiting the file size
The main reason for the message about reaching the maximum size lies not in the capabilities of the processor or camera, but in the data storage structure. Most microSD memory cards, as well as many internal partitions of older or budget smartphones, are formatted in the file system FAT32. This system was developed decades ago and has a fundamental limitation: it does not support the creation of single files larger than 4 gigabytes.
When you record video at 4K or even 1080p high bitrate, the file size grows very quickly. Once the amount of data being written approaches the 4 GB mark, the file system controller blocks further writing to that particular file so as not to violate the integrity of the data structure. The camera is forced to stop recording because it cannot create a new file automatically within the current session without user intervention or special settings.
Modern flagship smartphones often use a more advanced file system exFAT, which does not have this limitation and allows you to create files of huge sizes, limited only by the physical capacity of the drive. However, if you are using an external memory card purchased separately, it may be formatted from the factory in FAT32 for maximum compatibility with older devices, cameras and car recorders.
⚠️ Attention: Attempting to write a file larger than 4 GB to a FAT32 partition may not only cause recording to stop, but also damage the already recorded portion of the video, causing the file is unreadable.
Before purchasing a memory card, check its specifications: to record 4K video lasting more than 30 minutes, you need a card that supports the exFAT file system and a recording speed of at least Class 10 UHS-I.
The influence of the FAT32 file system and exFAT
The difference between file systems is a key factor in solving this problem. FAT32 provides excellent compatibility: cards with this system can be read by almost any device, from old TVs to game consoles. But the price of this compatibility is a hard limit of 4 GB per file. At the same time, exFAT is designed specifically for large-capacity flash drives and supports files up to 16 exabytes in size, which is more than enough for any video archives.
If your smartphone reports that it has reached the limit, the first thing you need to do is check the format of your memory card. This can be done in the device settings. Typically the path looks like this: Settings → Storage → Memory card. The drive properties will indicate the file system type. If it says FAT32, and you plan to shoot long videos, you will have to choose: either put up with splitting the videos, or reformat the card.
The process of changing the file system requires completely deleting all data from the media. This is a critical point that users often forget. Before any formatting operation, you must create a backup copy of all photos, documents and videos on your computer or in cloud storage. After formatting to exFAT the 4 GB limit will disappear, and the camera will be able to write continuously until the free space runs out.
☑️ Preparing to change the file system
It is worth noting that some smartphone manufacturers do not allow the user to independently select the file system when formatting the card through the phone menu. In such cases, the device can force format the card regardless of its capacity. To solve this problem, you may need to use a computer and third-party utilities for formatting. FAT32 regardless of its volume. To resolve this issue, you may need to use your computer and third-party formatting utilities.
Camera settings and recording bitrate
In addition to the file system, the speed of filling the file size limit is directly affected by the settings of the camera itself. The higher the resolution and frame rate, the more data is processed and recorded per unit of time. Settings like 4K at 60 fps consuming gigabytes of memory much faster than standard 1080p at 30 fps.
Bitrate (data flow rate) is another hidden parameter that affects file size. Many modern smartphones allow you to manually or by selecting a shooting profile to adjust the recording quality. High bitrate provides better detail and fewer compression artifacts, especially in fast-moving scenes, but leads to quickly reaching the 4 GB threshold.
- 🎥 Resolution: Downloading from 4K to 1080p reduces file size by 3-4 times, allowing you to shoot longer.
- 📉 Frame rate: Going from 60 fps by 30 fps reduces the amount of data by half without a critical loss of smoothness for ordinary scenes.
- 💾 Codec: Using a codec H.265 (HEVC) instead of H.264 allows you to reduce the file size while maintaining the same visual quality.
Using a codec H.265 (also known as HEVC) is an effective way to get around the size limitation without sacrificing picture quality. This compression standard is 30-50% more efficient than the old one. However, it is worth considering that older computers or media players may not support playback of files encoded in H.264. However, it is worth considering that older computers or media players may not support playback of files encoded in H.265.
How to enable HEVC on Android?
Go to the camera settings, find the "Video Format" or "Advanced" section. If your model supports H.265 hardware encoding, switch the High Efficiency Video option to the active position. This may also be called "HEVC" or "H.265".
Comparison of formats and recording limits
For clarity, let's look at how different shooting parameters affect the recording time before reaching the 4 GB limit on the FAT32 file system. These data are approximate, since the actual size depends on the complexity of the scene, the amount of detail and movement in the frame.
| Recording parameters | Approximate bitrate | Time up to 4 GB (FAT32) | Recommended FS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4K @ 60 fps | ~100 Mbit/s | ~5-6 minutes | exFAT |
| 4K @ 30 fps | ~50-60 Mbit/s | ~10-12 minutes | exFAT |
| 1080p @ 60 fps | ~20-30 Mbit/s | ~20-25 minutes | FAT32 / exFAT |
| 1080p @ 30 fps | ~10-15 Mbit/s | ~40-50 minutes | FAT32 / exFAT |
As can be seen from the table, when shooting in 4K, the 4 GB limit becomes critical after just a few minutes. For professional shooting or recording long events, using a card with FAT32 in this mode is almost impossible without constantly restarting the recording.
If you cannot format the card in exFAT, the only option when shooting in high quality is manual control of the process. You will have to watch the timer carefully and stop recording a couple of seconds before the intended limit in order to start a new file. Some third-party camera apps have an automatic partitioning feature, which we'll talk about next.
Third-party applications to bypass restrictions
The standard camera application on many smartphones does not have the function of automatically splitting videos into parts when they reach a certain size. It simply stops recording. However, the ecosystem Android offers many third-party solutions that can bypass this limitation programmatically.
Applications like Open Camera or professional vlogging tools allow you to adjust the "Max file size" setting. You can set a limit of, for example, 3.8 GB. When the recording reaches this value, the application will automatically save the current file and instantly begin recording the next one without interrupting the process for the user. As a result, you will receive several files (video_1.mp4, video_2.mp4), which can later be stitched together in a video editor.
Using such applications also gives access to advanced bitrate and codec settings that may be hidden in a standard camera. This allows you to more flexibly control the size of the final files. For example, you can forcefully reduce the bitrate to fit a longer video into one file, even on the system FAT32.
⚠️ Attention: When using the automatic video splitting function, there may be a micro-pause of 1-2 seconds between parts of the file, during which image and sound are lost. Do not use this method for shooting critical moments where continuity is important.
To activate this function in Open Camera you must go to the settings, select the "Video Settings" section and find the "Max. File Size" item. Setting the value to 3900 MB will provide a safe margin up to the actual file system limit.
Third-party cameras are the only software solution for continuous recording on FAT32 cards, since they emulate a break and start of a new recording faster than standard software.
Frequent errors and how to resolve them
Sometimes users encounter maximum video size error, even if they have a modern file system exFAT and enough free memory. In such cases, the problem may lie in software glitches or the camera app cache. Accumulated temporary files may interfere with the recording process, causing false restrictions to trigger.
The first step in diagnosing such an issue should be to clear the camera app cache. This will not delete your settings or snapshots, but it will reset temporary data that may have become corrupted. Go to Settings → Applications → Camera → Storage and click the "Clear cache" button. If this does not help, restart the device in safe mode to exclude the influence of third-party widgets or background processes.
Another reason may be damage to the file table on the memory card itself. Even if the card is formatted in exFAT, logic errors may cause the free space or available file size to be incorrectly determined. In this case, a complete check of the disk for errors using the utility chkdsk on the computer or the built-in drive check function in the settings will help. Android.
- 🔄 Reboot: A simple restart of the smartphone often resolves temporary conflicts in the recording processes.
- 🗑️ Clearing the cache: Deletes temporary files that interfere with the correct operation of the camera module.
- 💿 Replacing the card: If the memory card is old or counterfeit, it may incorrectly report its capabilities to the system.
It is also worth checking if the "Economy" mode is enabled energy." In this mode, the system can artificially limit the operation of the processor and recording module in order to save battery power, which is sometimes interpreted by the camera as the inability to continue recording a large file.
What to do if the phone does not see the memory card after formatting in exFAT?
Some older smartphone models (released before 2016) may not have drivers for working with the exFAT file system. In this case, the phone simply will not be able to read the card. Solution: format the card back to FAT32 using special utilities on your PC (for example, FAT32 Format), which allow you to bypass the standard Windows limitation on creating FAT32 partitions larger than 32 GB, although the 4 GB file limit will remain.
Is it possible to restore a video if recording is interrupted due to the size limit?
In most cases, the file is recorded until it stops, it is saved correctly and can be played back. The problem arises if the recording was interrupted unexpectedly (the card was removed, the battery died). Then the file may be damaged. There are special video repair apps that can try to restore the file header, but success cannot be guaranteed when writing to FAT32 with an overflow.
Why can you write files larger than 4 GB to the internal memory, but not to the card?
The internal memory of modern smartphones almost always uses the f2fs or ext4 file system (in Linux-based Android), which have no limit in 4 GB. The limitation is typical specifically for external microSD cards, which often come with a factory FAT32 partition for versatility.
Does the speed of the memory card affect the occurrence of this error?
Indirectly - yes. If the card's recording speed (Class) is lower than the video bitrate, the camera's buffer overflows and recording may stop with an error that the user may confuse with a file size error. For 4K video, you need a UHS Speed Class 3 (U3) or V30 card.
How to find the exact file size in real time when recording?
The stock Android camera rarely shows the file size in megabytes during recording. To do this, it is better to use applications like "Open Camera", where the interface can display the current size of the recorded container, which allows you to accurately control the approach to the 4 GB limit.