[Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

I just re-encoded some .divx video's to numbers around 400x280 and about 48k audio it all works out to about 1.1Mbps...video that was jerky and had nothing but frame drops now works perfectly.

I again have confidence that once the coders out there get serious we will have reasonable streaming to NIT's. I have to admit I was concerened I over estimated the ability of the N800 to play video...

I am going to put a file on one of my web servers and see how that goes from mplayer. But I have a few balls in the air right now....so real-soon-now I'll test that part.

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

btw, still wish the audio output was better....everything cranked up and even connected to amplified speakers put it just above the wind blowing outside.

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

If you are having audio problems being too low, try encoding using the N800 Video Convert and checking the box on Audio Normalization.

Audio Normalization is not yet a feature in the official Nokia Internet Tablet Video Converter, but I have raised this as an enhancement request with vbrilon who is the developer of the software.

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

Not a developer (that gives me too much credit :) ), but I am a product manager for it.

Brecklundin, can you please try converting a video with the Nokia ITVC and tell me how the video/audio work out for you as compared to other converters?

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

thanks both of ya. Problem is I use .divx almost everywhere here. The Nokia Converter doesn't do Divx. I would need to convert to another video format then let turn the Nokia converter loose on it. I am going to play with a couple other divx friendly apps as I don't want another 90min step in the process. I would use that as a last chance option. So, thanks I was not aware that the Nokia Converter had a sound normilization option.

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

Sure, I'll work on doing one and see how it compares. But there will be a "man in the middle" since I have to convert from DIVX to something for ITVC. ;)

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

Hmm...we should be able to handle divx ok as long as the codecs are installed for it. Can Windows Media player play the divx files?

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

The Nokia Converter doesn't have a sound normalization option, which is why I raised an enhancement request for it.

There are two converters that I use:

Nokia Internet Tablet Video Converter (NITVC) - vbrilon is the product manager for this. NITVC converts video files (most formats are supported. MKV is not supported yet) to MP4 format that plays back well on the built-in media player

N800 Video Convert (http://xoomer.alice.it/sepaolo/n800vc/) which converts most movie formats (MKV included, though I suspect that it will convert anything that your PC can playback with the right codecs) to AVI (not sure if it is DivX or Xvid) that can be played back on the tablet with Mplayer.

N800VC's output file sizes are usually around 5% to 10% smaller than output files from NITVC, but I don't like the way Canola handles MP4/AVI files (I would prefer it if Canola would use the built-in Media Player for MP4 playback and Mplayer for AVI playback). As such, I now have a mix of MP4 and AVI movies and it's really annoying -- will have to start running a batch conversion from DivX to MP4 using NITVC later this evening.

I'll be hosting some torrents soon for people who want stuff that I've already converted and optimized for the N800, movies like Pulp Fiction, Star Wars, Bourne trilogy, etc, for the benefit of those who already have the DVDs but haven't gotten around to ripping and converting them.

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

Right, sorry I should have been more clear in my request --

I was asking if the sound issues that the original poster was having was a result of the conversion process or problems with the source file. If it's the former, are the audio codecs we use in the ITVC good enough to solve the issue as they are?

But yes, the sound normalization is something that has been put into the queue to be evaluated for future releases.

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

vbrilion:

Gottcha, and no the issue is not the source file. The converted file (to AVI from DIVX) plays fine on my laptop all audio levels are as they should be. It is on the N800 where the volume is low.

==================

To reply to others in general, I have made two passes as getting ITVC to convert the AVI file and neither went well. It's kinda late and I need to get some snoozy time.

And to the question about WMP playing DIVX...sure because I have the codec's installed for DIVX. I can use Winamp, WMP and of course the dedicated DIVX player. Then on the NIT I can play a down-sampled DIVX copy just fine with the following values:

420x236 32khz 16bps Stereo 24fps ~1043kbps

Which are all fine for viewing on the NIT...and they play great.

But when I made a sample AVI using some app I found. That sample again plays fine on my PC then after processing through the converter it plays out of synch on my pc as well as on the NIT.

So, I don't think I'll really try any more. I can use mplayer fine to play the down-sampled/re-encoded DIVX files. I created the down sampled DIVX from the original DIVX file using Converter that comes with the Divx Player from Divx.

And the version of ITVC I have refuses to do anything with a .divx format file. I have version 0.24 (11.01.08)...if it is supposed to support .divx files ummm...someone fibbed. ;)

BTW, I like mplayer as my player of choice because it will stream .divx over the web. The tablet has a hard time with video not formatted for it but I certainly can run overnight batch conversions so I can stream video to myself when I want to use the NIT away from home.

All I need after that is support for NSV streams...hey, a guy can dream can't he? ;)

nytall!!

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

Thanks for clearing that up because I was really confused as I could not find a setting... :confused:

Kinda figured that from what he said....again thanks for cluing us all in on the scoop.

Thanks for the tip on the N800VC...I am looking at it before bed...it's 1am AGAIN and it seems I can't get to bed before 4am since my N800 arrived...the thing is EVIL I tell you!! HAHAHA....but it does mean less time during the day for problems to visit my door step.

BTW, I personally think there are just too many video player options and they all seem to create a bit of confusion. I imagine it is worse for the typical home "I just want to turn it on and use it" user...then again one of the big reasons I went for the N800 is it's not some locked system. Anyway, it sure would help if the developer community gathered together and decided on some standards and maybe even pooled resources to create the needed conversion libs on the PC end.

Right now, I just deleted Canola because, while it's pretty, it doesn't play anything I own and I do not need application bloat. Then there is the default Media Player, a Media Center .

I installed Mplayer because it does support .divx and can eventually support NSV. I have tested it from the command line and have had mixed results for NSV (usually plays only the audio track, depends on if the NSV encoding uses IP6 or not) and EXCELLENT results with .divx. Then there is gawds knows what else...

I know I am media tech challenged, always avoided it like the plague, but I am far from the home pseudo-power user and it all looks kinda murky to me. I need simple as I get old... :rolleyes:

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

I've spent way too much time on my NIT since I got it back in early October 07, but I have really enjoyed the ownership experience. it's not perfect and it certainly could be faster, but I'm happy with what I have now

Yes, Canola is just a pretty front-end, but it's useful for me when I'm in the car and haven't got the time at the stop lights to start picking about the little menus. Otherwise, the default Media Player does the job for me :)

You're right about there being too many options right now as well, but seeing that this community is one that nitpicks on the problem of not enough options being available, I guess choice works for them. As for me, I'm happy with whatever works, but I like consistency in my file formats. The fact that I have MP4 video and AVI video files running around in my N800 now is annoying the heck out of me, but I had some videos in MKV format that NITVC wouldn't touch, so I'm waiting for NITVC to support it, and that will be the end of using AVI files -- I would prefer to run MP4s since they are better supported by the Media Player, and my torrents will be able to help a larger, less-tech-savvy N8x0 user base, people who want to "just want to turn it on and use it" ;)

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

Don't worry about that: soon the dismal battery autonomy (less than 2 hours using the browser, I'd suppose that video will suck even more power, especially if you try to stream it) will make you go to sleep earlier. ;)

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

Can you file that as an enhancement request please? https://bugs.maemo.org is the Bugzilla. Not sure what it would take to support MKV files, but we can certainly get some folks to take a look at it at least.

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

I'm not certain what you're saying about the battery life on the N8x0. I can pretty much use my N800 all day, a good 12hrs on a single charge if I'm simply web browsing or running apps. I do have power settings to idle wheen noot in use as well as hang the display set at 2-bars and not cranked all the way up. I also have the wifi card set to 10mW vs. 100mW as I am always in close proximity to my router or have a clean line-of-sight. That change makes a huge difference if you are browsing a lot.

A nice side effect of keeping the backlight turned down is it will help prolong the life of the backlight in the tablet. If you leave it maxed out all the time then you will shorten it's life span. Unless of course the N8x0's used LED not CCFL backlights. LED backlights should outlive all of us combined, no matter how high they are turned up. ;)

I would expect about 2hrs when streaming or watching video. I only get about 4-5 hrs on my 17" laptop with an extra 8-10hr battery. Under normal use I get about 6-8hrs on that laptop. Video with all the bells & whistles just drains batteries......

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

I think it's more then that. I've watched several episodes of Gundam 00 back to back on it. Those episodes were about 30 minutes each (give or take a few minutes) and I skipped the intro and credits. So it's about 27 min each.

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

Heck, I've watched 2 movies back-to-back on the plane (Children of Men and A Scanner Darkly, 109 and 100 minutes respectively). 4 hours is about the time I get watching movies, and around 4-6 with heavy to light browsing.

Suffice to say, luca's battery life claims are completely bogus.

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

I use iriverter with the n800/n770 plug-in. It allows you to boost audio and produces very nice video. It reads video files as well as DVD's. :)

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

Interesting. Thanks for the links, I've been trying to find something that would boost the audio a little.

Re: [Video mplayer] What a difference conversions makes.
 

Yeah, that sounds much better. I have yet to not get at least 4hrs using mine. But did not want to claim more as I have not been awake when the power finally poop'd out to say when it occured. :)



And thanks to everyone for the links to alternative conversion apps! I have had little success with the Internet Tablet Video Converter, maybe I just don't understand it completely, others have mentioned it works well for them sooooo.

But I have had great success with the Nokia N800 Video Convert software. I also get perfect results from using the DIVX converter for my DIVX video so I have little need to convert to another format in order to reformat the video for the NIT's. Really why add an extra conversion when Mplayer plays DIVX just fine.

Both the Divx Converter and Nokia N800 Convert work in batch mode so tonight I'll run a batch and see how it works by tomorrow AM.