PowerPoint Embedded Videos Are Stuttering In Presentation Mode After Mac OS Update to Tahoe OS

Question

I updated the the OS on my MacBook Pro to Tahoe 26.2 last week, and almost immediately the embedded videos in all of my PowerPoints began stuttering, rather than play smoothly. (The audio continues to play smoothly. Only the video staggers.) I also noticed that the presentation clock stutters along with the videos. Several reboots, starting with fresh PowerPoint files, and an OS update to Tahoe 26.3 have done nothing to solve the problem. PowerPoint for Mac does not have the same menus as PC, so there is no "File -> Info tab" (for example). So solutions like "Optimize Compatibility" don't exist. Anyone else having this issue? And is there a solution?

Answer 1

I have the same issue in presenter mode. I have not been able to find a solution and both Apple and Microsoft experts have done all the things suggested and more. The issue has been bumped up to Level 3 of Microsoft and I have spent 3 sessions of 2-3 hours each on the phone w/ them and the problem persists. We have uninstalled Microsoft office and reinstalled, we have used a separate test account, we have tested in safe mode, etc. I have presentations that worked prior to installing Tahoe and now don't though Apple swears it's a Microsoft issue. I'm still waiting for someone to get back to me this week from w/ their solution - they are consulting and studying the issue, supposedly, although it seems like we keep trying the same things over and over (I suspect they're going to punt it back to Apple and say the operating system needs to be reinstalled though I'm pretty sure we did that (you cannot go back to an old OS, so I don't think this is going to solve the problem). I'm "happy" to hear that at least I'm not crazy and not the only one who has the problem as they all have said this is the first time they're hearing about this issue. One thing I did learn though is that you can use an online version of Powerpoint and upload the powerpoint and it wil work in presenter mode there.

Answer 2

Try creating a new user account (System Settings>Users & Groups), signing in to that, then testing if the problem still exists. If it goes away, it's an issue with the user profile part of your Office installation.

If the issue still exists, or you'd rather not move your user data to a new profile, try uninstalling Office following these steps: Uninstall Office for Mac Then reinstall from the Subscriptions page of your Microsoft account.

Answer 3

Hi Christopher O

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A Forum and sharing your experience.

Based on your observation, PowerPoint for Mac does not have the same menus as Windows, so options that are commonly referenced in Windows‑based guidance are not available on macOS. You may want to try the following workarounds.

• Make sure all Office apps are fully up to date.
• Open your PowerPoint presentation.
• Select any video in the slide.
• Go to the Picture Format tab in the ribbon (this appears only when the video is selected).
• Look for a Compress Media button. If available, choose Low Quality or Standard (720p).

Note: This option is inconsistent on PowerPoint for Mac and may not appear in all builds or versions.

If the button is not present, media compression must be done outside PowerPoint. You can try re‑encoding the embedded videos to a standard MP4 (H.264) format and then reinsert them into the presentation.

If the presentation is time‑critical, you may also consider presenting from another device or using PowerPoint for the web (PowerPoint Online) as a temporary alternative.

Please let me know how things go on your side as your update can also assist others in the community who may be facing the same issue.

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Answer 4

It seems that the stuttering issue with embedded videos in PowerPoint after updating to macOS Tahoe could be related to compatibility problems between the new OS version and PowerPoint. Since you've already tried rebooting and updating to Tahoe 26.3 without success, here are a few suggestions that might help:

1. Test in Safe Mode: You can try running PowerPoint in Safe Mode to see if the issue persists. This can help determine if background applications are interfering with PowerPoint's performance.
2. Create a New User Account: Sometimes, user-specific settings can cause issues. Creating a new user account and testing PowerPoint there can help identify if the problem is related to your user profile.
3. Reinstall PowerPoint: If the problem continues, consider uninstalling and then reinstalling PowerPoint to ensure that all components are properly configured.
4. Check for Updates: Make sure that all your Office applications are up to date. Sometimes, updates can fix bugs that cause performance issues.

If these steps do not resolve the issue, it may be beneficial to check forums or support communities for similar experiences and potential fixes, as this could be a known issue with the latest macOS update.

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References:

• PowerPoint for Mac closes or quit unexpectedly when you start it or open a new presentation
• PowerPoint stops responding (spinning wheel)