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With all those video formats and converters out there, you don’t know which one to use and which one works best. I don’t know either but here’s a guide explaining different settings you should aim for when converting your videos for iPod Touch.

You can use the settings in this guide with any converter that you use.

Super

I’m going to use Super by eRightSoft because by far it’s what many people in different encoding forums recommend. It doesn’t look sleek but it’s fast, flexible and most of all FREE! Beats using those commercial converters.

It’s a big download (30MB) because it already has the necessary codecs for encoding included.

Choose your output

Once installed, open up Super and drag your video/s into the box below. I’m gonna convert an episode of The Mentalist.

On the top part you have to choose what output container (format) you need. Choose Apple – iPod/iPhone (mp4) since the format for iPod Touch videos is mp4.

For the video codec to use, you have the option to encode with MPEG-4 or H.264/AVC. MPEG-4 is faster to encode but H.264/AVC gives better quality if you’re planning to plug your iPod into a bigger screen.

I’m gonna choose MPEG-4. Leave the default AAC LC for Audio Codec.

Settings for Video

First thing you need to decide on is the Video Scale Size.

iPod Touch has a maximum video resolution of 480 x 320. Anything greater than that will just be a waste of space. You can go up to 640 x 480 if you’re going to view your video on a TV. 

Know your video source properties. If I’m going to double click on my file, I will see that the aspect ratio of my source is 16:9 and the frame rate is 23.976 fps.

Since my original video is in widescreen format, I’m going to choose 480 x 272 and it will automatically choose the 16:9 aspect ratio.

For the frame rate, it is always best to use whatever your original is to avoid getting sync problems with your audio and video. I’m going with 23.976.

Bitrate is really trial and error for me. Higher bitrate will result to a big file but better quality. I tried a bitrate in the 200’s and my video gets a little bit pixelated. But going higher than 720 will sometimes result to video not playing.

My sweet spot is 384 or 480. I’m going to leave the other options untouched.

Settings for Audio

For audio, sampling frequency is left at 44100 Hz which is the norm for portable media players and make sure to use the 2 channels.

Again with the bitrate, higher will give you better quality at the expense of file size but upon testing, 64 kbps and 128 kbps doesn’t give much difference for me. Maybe because I’m using good quality earphones? I’m going to stick with 64 kbps.

That’s it. If you’re ready, hit the Encode button and make sure your PC is not doing anything heavy for quicker conversion.

After about 20 minutes in a slow-ass single-core 2.2GHz machine, my video is finished. Only thing left to do is add those files into iTunes so you can sync it with your iPod.

From 350MB, the converted file went down to 139MB and is viewable on my iPod Touch. If you’re not happy with the quality, feel free to crank up the bit rate to the 500’s.

You might also be interested in:

• How to download YouTube videos on your iPod Touch
• How to distinguish an iPod Touch 2G from an iPod Touch 3G
• Moshi iGlaze touch G4 casing for iPod Touch 4G review
• Change the “iPod” text in your iPod Touch

Filed under: iPod Touch and iPad, Tips n' Trix