Playback

Playback and format guide

StereoLift delivers your 3D video in Full Side-by-Side format, with both eyes at full original resolution in one wide frame. This guide lists tested players and playback paths for the major VR headsets, 3D displays, and stereoscopic software players, explains what to do if 3D mode does not switch on automatically, and shows how to preview the 3D effect without a headset.

Quick start

Open the downloaded video in one of the recommended players for your device. The device guide below lists a tested option for every major platform.
Many dedicated 3D players switch to Full Side-by-Side mode automatically when they read the embedded stereoscopic metadata.
If 3D mode does not switch on, set the format to "Side-by-Side" or "Full SBS" in the player’s settings. Match the input eye order to your file: Parallel is left-first; Cross-view is right-first.
If you need a different platform behavior later, the free local metadata tools can add or remove 3D recognition and display-shape signaling on your device.

Output at a glance

Primary output: Full Side-by-Side 3D. Each eye keeps its full original resolution in one wide frame, with no half-width compression. Parallel eye order is the default; eligible checkouts also offer Cross-view.
Output signaling: Full SBS files include 3D recognition and display-shape (SAR) metadata by default. You can turn either off independently at checkout. Spherical VR output keeps the signaling needed by headset players. The free local metadata tools can later add or remove the Full SBS signals without uploading the video again.
Maximum resolution: Up to 4K per eye for supported source material.
Maximum frame rate: Up to 90 fps. The output frame rate matches the source unless you select a reduced output profile.
Containers: The delivery container is selected to preserve compatible source streams as cleanly as possible. MP4 is used for broadly compatible sources; MKV is used when a compatible source audio track needs a more flexible container.
Audio handling: Audio is stream-copied from the source, not transcoded. Compatible multi-channel and high-bitrate tracks are preserved unchanged. If a file contains a supported compatibility track plus an unsupported spatial-audio track, the supported track is kept; if no audio track can be packaged safely, checkout warns that the output will be silent.
HDR handling: HDR10 sources are preserved end-to-end: 10-bit color depth, BT.2020 primaries, and the source's master-display and content-light metadata are carried into the delivered file.
Anaglyph option: A separate anaglyph conversion is available as a child order for playback in any regular video player with red-cyan glasses.

Device and player matrix

Recommended player or setting for each platform StereoLift output is verified against. Pick the row that matches your target device.

Platform	Recommended apps or players	Best fit	Notes
Meta Quest and Pico	SKYBOX, Pigasus, 4XVR, Bigscreen	Direct Full SBS playback in dedicated VR media players.	If the app does not detect the format automatically, select Full SBS in its 3D settings.
Apple Vision Pro	SKYBOX, Moon Player, Reality Player	Third-party SBS playback on visionOS.	Output is standard Full SBS, not Apple's MV-HEVC spatial format. Apple's native Photos and Apple TV spatial experiences do not play SBS files; use one of the third-party players above.
PSVR2	Rad TV	Stereoscopic side-by-side playback on PSVR2.	Some Rad TV features, including local file handling, require a premium subscription.
3D TVs and projectors	Display-native 3D mode or external player	Displays that accept Full SBS input directly.	Older HDMI 1.4-era 3D displays were designed around half-width SBS and frame-packed Blu-ray formats, so behavior on Full SBS varies. Selecting Side-by-Side or Full SBS manually in the display menu is usually enough.
Android TV, Fire TV, and NVIDIA Shield	Kodi	Living-room playback with explicit stereoscopic mode switching.	Kodi reads the embedded 3D metadata directly and is the most reliable choice for 3D mode switching on TV-class devices.
Windows	PotPlayer, Bino	Desktop playback with built-in 3D mode switching.	PotPlayer offers the fastest switching between SBS, anaglyph, and cross-eye output via its right-click menu.
macOS	mpv, Bino	Desktop stereoscopic playback on Mac.	mpv handles Full SBS reliably from the command line. Bino offers a graphical interface where building from source is acceptable.
Linux	Bino, mpv	Desktop playback with strong stereoscopic controls.	Bino is available via Flathub. mpv covers cross-eye and anaglyph viewing directly from the command line.
iPhone, iPad, and Android	nPlayer	Mobile playback with full 3D post-processing controls.	Open Settings → Video → Post Processing, enable it, then choose 3D Mode and select side-by-side input.
Standard 2D players	Any regular player with red-cyan glasses	Anaglyph playback without dedicated 3D software.	Order the separate anaglyph conversion when a SBS-aware player is not available on the target device.

Will my player auto-detect the 3D format?

With 3D recognition enabled, delivered Full SBS files carry container flags and frame-level signaling. Many 3D-capable players use this to switch into Full SBS mode automatically. If recognition is disabled or ignored, select Side-by-Side or Full SBS manually and match the input eye order to the file. The free local metadata tools can add or remove 3D recognition and display-shape metadata fully on your device.

Why does a 2D player show a squished image?

With the default display-shape metadata enabled, a regular 2D player may show both eyes horizontally squashed. The file is not damaged. This metadata, also called SAR or aspect-ratio signaling, tells the player how to display the wide frame. A 3D-capable player splits the frame first and renders each eye at full resolution. Turning off display-shape metadata at checkout, or removing it later with the free local metadata tools, restores the full wide frame. It does not swap the eye images. For cross-eye free viewing, choose Cross-view at checkout or use a player’s cross-eye output mode, such as PotPlayer on Windows.

Is StereoLift output the same as Apple MV-HEVC spatial video?

No. Apple's MV-HEVC spatial format encodes each eye as a separate HEVC track inside an Apple-specific container and is required by Apple's native spatial-video apps on Vision Pro, iPhone, and iPad. StereoLift output is standard Full SBS, which works in the SBS-aware players listed above, including third-party SBS players on Vision Pro such as SKYBOX, Moon Player, and Reality Player, but not in Apple's native Photos or Apple TV spatial experience.

Can I upload my 3D video to YouTube?

Yes. YouTube accepts Full SBS uploads, and StereoLift writes the stereoscopic metadata YouTube expects for MP4 delivery when 3D recognition is enabled. In supported YouTube VR and 3D playback paths, the upload is recognized as stereoscopic after processing. The YouTube VR app on Meta Quest and Pico headsets is the most relevant target; standard web and mobile players may still show the file as a single wide 2D frame. If you want YouTube to treat the same SBS pixels as a plain side-by-side video instead, turn off 3D recognition at checkout or use the free local metadata tools to remove it before upload. Two upload tips: keep the source roughly 16:9 so the resulting SBS file lands at a YouTube-friendly aspect ratio, and avoid vertical (9:16 or taller) sources because YouTube routes them into Shorts, which uses a different player with no 3D mode.

Back to the converter Open metadata tools View pricing examples