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I have a 40g ipod that's 2 years old. I recently checked out a colleagues' video iPod and fell in love with it. I imagined my commute made so much easier with video on top of music - especially with an eye towards long flights.

My questions are:

What is out there in terms of video content for the ipod? Are there music videos? Movies (for instance is the SW Trilogy available?) What format is the video in? Will I be able to convert Windows Media Player files, etc into the alternate iPod format?

And in a race between 30g and 80g which makes the most sense? I have a 40g version and I'm only now cracking 20g's of music after 2 years so does it make sense to go up to 80g's or will 30 do me just fine even with all the videos I can potentially load on there?

And if you do own one please tell me what you think. And even though I have had great experiences with the ipod if there are other video/MP3 players out there you want to recoemmend please feel free.

Thanks as always for your input.

I've had the Creative Zen Vision:M myself for about 2 months now, and for the most part I'm largely happy with it. As it is it's one of the more serious iPod competitors out there and offers a good chunk of features that the iPod doesn't have.

Mainly:

* No bloated software interface to load videos or music. Simply drag & drop or right-click and send-to in order to put them on the machine.

* Plays back nearly all .avi video formats without worry of DRM or converting the formats, including xvid, divx, and h.264 (I've yet to test the h.264 however).

* Easy to use video converting software in case there's formats you can't load.

* The battery can last up to 12-14 hours for just playing music, 3-4 hours with video playback. I'm not sure how the iPod competes, but I would imagine that is comparable.

It's a little bit bulkier than your typical iPod, but it costs less on the whole and comes in 30 and 60 gb formats. But imo for not having to tolerate iTunes (you merely have to install the driver software, then it's drag & drop), and being able to offload music or videos onto other computers without worrying about DRM, it's a huge plus. Especially if you're not concerned with fashion accessories. The black model I got tends to be a scratch magnet, but that's easy enough to fix with some sort of case for it.

Stravo wrote:I have a 40g ipod that's 2 years old. I recently checked out a colleagues' video iPod and fell in love with it. I imagined my commute made so much easier with video on top of music - especially with an eye towards long flights.

My questions are:
-snip-


And in a race between 30g and 80g which makes the most sense? I have a 40g version and I'm only now cracking 20g's of music after 2 years so does it make sense to go up to 80g's or will 30 do me just fine even with all the videos I can potentially load on there?

And if you do own one please tell me what you think. And even though I have had great experiences with the ipod if there are other video/MP3 players out there you want to recoemmend please feel free.

Thanks as always for your input.

Personally, I got a 60 GB for $300 the day after they released the 80 GB model at $350, and I love it. I used it for a 3 hour round trip commute to school; for the first week every night I would leave my computer ripping a movie and in the morning I'd have another movie to watch on the bus trip

It really depends on your usage. If you intend to rip 10+ DVD's on to your iPod, get the 80 GB one. If you intend to use it solely for music, get the 30 GB one.

It's important to note that the 80 GB iPod has a much bigger battery, too.

My iPod has 2500 photos, around 1000 songs, six or seven full films and 10 Weird Al music videos I ripped off YouTube.

What is out there in terms of video content for the ipod?
Are there music videos? Movies (for instance is the SW Trilogy available?)

There is more content available for the iPod than for any other player. iTunes has the most music available, plus tons of music videos and 220+ TV shows.

The iTunes Movie Store just opened and right now only has a couple of studios behind it, it's still gaining momentum. They're adding new movies and studios constantly, but right now there's only 90 or so films available. No Star Wars, sadly. However, there is *NO* video content compatible with any other player; none of the other movie stores (Google Video, Amazon Unbox) can be played on portable players.



Also iTunes works incredibly for handling audio and video. If my iPod were to be wiped tomorrow I could just plug it in and re-sync and everything would be back on there. It manages the library well and will convert WMA files for you. And of course the iPod will play back MP3, AAC, Apple Lossless, WAV, Audible, AIFF, etc.

What format is the video in? Will I be able to convert Windows Media Player files, etc into the alternate iPod format?

I personally PREFER iTunes at this point, it's handling of playlists works great, the syncing works fine and I don't find it bothersome.

As far as video conversions, there are dozens of bits of free software out there to convert video to play on an iPod. Basicly, the rule is that it maxes out at MPEG-4 640x480 @ 2500 bitrate. You can actually increase the resolution (Say, if you want widescreen 800x480) if you decrease the bitrate appropriately.

Like I said, Windows Media Audio files are converted for you; you'll need to find some freeware to convert Windows Media Video for you.

If you have a Mac, download these two gems of free software:

Handbrake - The most seamless peice of software I've ever used. Lots of optional advanced video settings; one click will rip a DVD (copy protect or not) straight to iPod compatible MPEG-4 @ TV resolutions.

iSquint - Will convert virtually any format straight to iPod compatible MPEG-4...includes DivX, XVid, WMV, MOV, DV, 3GP, FLV, etc.

I use iSquint to convert YouTube videos to iPod; almost endless content through that.

Otherwise, there are Windows alternatives available. But nothing I've used compares to Handbrake.

My use for the video iPod has been for, A, music, and B, keeping my entire movie and photo collection in my pocket along with some TV-out cables so I can play them anywhere.

* The battery can last up to 12-14 hours for just playing music, 3-4 hours with video playback. I'm not sure how the iPod competes, but I would imagine that is comparable.

The latest iPod refresh increased the battery life. The 30 GB iPod has comparable battery life (Apple claims 14 hours of music and 4 hours of video playback; I've yet to have my iPod battery die on me and I think I've played more than 4 hours of video at one time so I think this might be short a little).

The 80 GB iPod has a 20 hour battery life with music and 6.5 hour battery life with video.

It's a little bit bulkier than your typical iPod, but it costs less on the whole

No, it's bulkier and costs the *same*. It does, however, offer an FM radio.

It staggers me that someone could be so ignorant as to describe 'easy to use conversion software' as an advantage OVER an iPod. The video conversion is totally, utterly seamless in iTunes! Oh wait, it's bloated, packed with DRM and it's just terrible to have to write to the database the interface is based on.

Basically, nothing General Zod listed beyond the dubious benefit of direct copying is real. Everything else is an ignorant misrepresentation.

Stark wrote:It staggers me that someone could be so ignorant as to describe 'easy to use conversion software' as an advantage OVER an iPod. The video conversion is totally, utterly seamless in iTunes! Oh wait, it's bloated, packed with DRM and it's just terrible to have to write to the database the interface is based on.

Basically, nothing General Zod listed beyond the dubious benefit of direct copying is real. Everything else is an ignorant misrepresentation.

Well, admittedly, iTunes doesn't convert DivX, flv (youtube), and WMV videos to iPod if you have videos in that format. That's why I downloaded iSquint (which is easy as pie, drag and drop a video in and choose a folder to save the video to, and it's blazing fast).

Really? Almost all my media is xvid/divx, and I hadn't noticed anything strange.

Stark wrote:Really? Almost all my media is xvid/divx, and I hadn't noticed anything strange.

I thought iTunes only converted videos it could play, and couldn't play DivX?

I never bothered testing it, was an assumption. Or maybe installing the QuickTime DivX codec means iTunes is able to play it and thus convert it.

I really like using iTunes for videos though; after I rip DVD's to MPEG-4, I use Google to find album art and attach the DVD cover to it, so I see the video titles in a visual library.

For those who don't have Mac's, it's a bitch to turn things into formats playable on an iPod. That being said, the iPod video quality is surprisingly good! If you can get WMV and DivX files to work, (I've never tried.) then go for it. You can download music videos and even TV episodes (for a price) off iTunes. I keep my entire music library in either mp3 or ACC, and I've never had a problem with iTunes.

Bottom line: If you like iPods, you'll love the iPod Video.

There are some decent free converters out there; I got one on my sister's computer and showed her step by step how to use FireFox's VideoDownloader plugin to rip a YouTube video to FLV, then convert that to iPod.

Not that I know much about the subject of MP3/video players, but a co-worker of mine got the Ipod video back when it came out. I checked it out and the size of the screen really turned me off. You might consider looking into something with a bigger screen if watching videos is going to be a common activity (I know I wouldn't want to spend 3 hours a day watching that tiny screen while on the train).

InnocentBystander wrote: (I know I wouldn't want to spend 3 hours a day watching that tiny screen while on the train).

I did just that, it's actually quite enjoyable.
Outside of the Zune, which sucks, all the alternatives in the same price range (including Zen) have the same size screen.

Praxis wrote:

InnocentBystander wrote: (I know I wouldn't want to spend 3 hours a day watching that tiny screen while on the train).

I did just that, it's actually quite enjoyable.
Outside of the Zune, which sucks, all the alternatives in the same price range (including Zen) have the same size screen.

Only the Zen Vision:M. The Vision:W has a wider screen for $50 more than the W. (At least the 30gb model). The 60gb model is $100 more.

Hmm, I haven't seen the Vision: W...none of the local stores carry it.

Praxis wrote:Hmm, I haven't seen the Vision: W...none of the local stores carry it.

It's a relatively new machine from my understanding, so it probably hasn't reached the majority of places yet. Though it is up on Creative's website.

One thing I do like about Zune etc is the very large screen.

Stark wrote:One thing I do like about Zune etc is the very large screen.

...but the resolution is the same as that of an iPod, so its not like the quality will be any better; if anything, it'd be a bit worse.

Praxis wrote:There are some decent free converters out there; I got one on my sister's computer and showed her step by step how to use FireFox's VideoDownloader plugin to rip a YouTube video to FLV, then convert that to iPod.

Know of any ones for the PC?

Davis 51 wrote:

Praxis wrote:There are some decent free converters out there; I got one on my sister's computer and showed her step by step how to use FireFox's VideoDownloader plugin to rip a YouTube video to FLV, then convert that to iPod.

Know of any ones for the PC?

There's a firefox etension that'll do that, which is available for both Mac and PC...that should suffice for most purposes

SeeingRed wrote:

Stark wrote:One thing I do like about Zune etc is the very large screen.

...but the resolution is the same as that of an iPod, so its not like the quality will be any better; if anything, it'd be a bit worse.

The screen is still a good deal larger. Of course I'm sure feelings on the screen size is dependant on the viewer. If I was in the market for something to watch movies on, I'd put down the extra $50-100 and get an Archos

If I was really interested in watching stuff during my commute, I wouldn't skimp on something as important as the screen size.

Yeah, watching movies on iPod-size things is just fucking lame. I never got the attraction at all. That Archos thing looks kinda neat... but I really don't understand the portable really small video player.

The only reason I'd ever use such a thing is to video-out it to a television.

I find the Zune's 3 inch screen a noticeable improvement over the 5G ipod's 2.5 inch screen. I depend on the ipod's MSC/UMS ability though. I watch shorts, almost Youtube like clips, on my 5G ipod sometimes.

I own a DS and I can't imagine wasting my time watching a movie on that screen. PSPs are probably the absolute minimum size, and they're quite large. I mean, phones can play media now: what kind of lunatic watches video on a 160x240, 1.5" screen?

Interestingly, I have a phone with a 320x240 2.4" screen. Don't watch much on that either, though.

When I was spending 3.5-4 hours a day going back and forth to work I would have loved to have something to watch. Of course at this point you can get a mobile dvd-player for less than $100, with a bigger screen for a fraction of the price. Something with a harddrive is easier, but you'd have to buy a LOT of dvd-rs to make up the difference between an ipod/zune and a cheap mobile dvd player.

General Zod wrote: * The battery can last up to 12-14 hours for just playing music, 3-4 hours with video playback. I'm not sure how the iPod competes, but I would imagine that is comparable.

20 hours music, 6 hours video.

It's a little bit bulkier than your typical iPod, but it costs less on the whole and comes in 30 and 60 gb formats. But imo for not having to tolerate iTunes (you merely have to install the driver software, then it's drag & drop), and being able to offload music or videos onto other computers without worrying about DRM, it's a huge plus. Especially if you're not concerned with fashion accessories. The black model I got tends to be a scratch magnet, but that's easy enough to fix with some sort of case for it.

What is this bullshit FUD about iTunes and DRM? There's only DRM if you buy a song from the store. Otherwise, you'll never have to deal with it.