[Lateralus]

The introduction of the 80GB Video iPod has brought me closer to an iPod purchase than I've been since I actually bought my 3G.

The main thing that kept me away before was the fact that the iPod could only handle a pretty crappy resolution. But now that it's been brought up to a much more respectable 640x480, I'm pretty much game except for one concern, and it may sound silly but I've not kept up much with the iPod scene; In QuickTime, you have the option to export video to 'iPod' format, m4v. So, as long as the video is m4v or .mov and at or below 640x480, the iPod will handle it correct? Or does it have to be 640x480?

And is there any sort of work around to get the iPod to play AVI?

Thanks.

[chabig]

It still plays 320 x 240. And to play AVI, you need to convert it to Quicktime. Quicktime Pro will let you do that.

Chris

[Lateralus]

Will it play resolutions other than 320x240 and 640x480 though?

[typoon]

Originally Posted by Lateralus

Will it play resolutions other than 320x240 and 640x480 though?

Yes but not using H.264 in MPEG4 you could before encode at 480X480 and 640X480 and it would work.

[Lateralus]

Meaning I can't just export to 'QuickTime Movie' I *have* to export to 'iPod' if my movie isn't exactly 480 or 640?

[Lateralus]

I placed an order for an 80GB and would like to find out for sure what format I need to put my video library in for the iPod because I'd like to start round-the-clock exporting all of it tonight.

[wilsonng]

I use iSquint to convert my AVis to iPod format.

For my DVDs, I use handbrake to convert my DVDs to iPod video format.

[andycroll]

What about widescreen resolutions?

Is it best to convert to 640 x (whatever) in h264?

[wilsonng]

Well, encoding in h264 takes a lot longer than encoding in mp4/ffmpegx in Handbrake. I'm generally happy with ffmpegx for its encoding speed and quality. You can try encoding in ffmpegx or h264 but be prepared for a much longer encoding time with h264.

The general rule of thumb is to multiply the height and width. If the width is less than 23,0400, then the iPod video will take it.

For example, I was encoding Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in Handbrake. The maximum resolution was 720 x 400. But 720 times 400 is 288,000 which is greater than 23,0400. I had to drop the resolution down to 624 x 352. The total resolution was 21,648. This was the biggest dimensions I could encode for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

I have the Extended version of Jet Li's Hero. The maximum resolution I could encode in is 720 x 320. It just so happens that 720 x 320 is 23,0400. So I can encode Jet Li's Hero (extended edition) at a resolution of 720 x 320 and it will work in my ipod.

A more comprehensive tutorial on iPod resolutions is located at :

The Complete Guide to iPod Video Formats and Display Resolutions

[tree44]

ffmpegX just updated a new version to support the new iPod 640x480 resolution. Much faster than Quicktime!

There is also a Tutorial here.