.Mov file plays in iTunes but wont go onto iPod

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Level 4

3,605 points

.Mov file plays in iTunes but wont go onto iPod

I used Quicktime Pro to convert a .avi movie file into a Mov. Imported it into iTunes where it plays fine. But when I try to sync it onto the iPod I get the message that it can't be played on the iPod. I know that the iPod can play Mov files, and I don't need to spend hours converting it to Mpeg4 as I have plenty of space. Why does it not work? Can anyone advise?

iMac G5 20", 2.1GHz, 250GB HD, 1.5GB ram, iBook G4 1.33Ghz,, Mac OS X (10.4.10), Maxtor 200GB onetouch III, 6mb DSL, Linksys WRT54G, iPod Classic 80Gb, Nano 2G

Posted on Oct 30, 2007 3:41 AM

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Answer 1

Simon-UK- Author

Level 4

3,605 points

Oct 30, 2007 4:50 AM in response to Simon-UK-

Ok I thought. Perhaps I was using the wrong approach. Instead of opening the file in QT pro, choosing 'save as' and ending up with, after 3 minutes, a .MOV that goes into iTunes and plays, I'll choose 'export as' instead. Things were looking good. Instead of taking 3 minutes, it took about 30 to make the conversion. Must be in the right form now? Dragged it into iTunes, I couldn't believe how slow it was importing - didn't make sense. Decided to checked the size of the file - it had only taken a 350mb file and converted it into a 28GB ONE!!!

What the H**L do I have to do?

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Answer 2

Simon-UK- Author

Level 4

3,605 points

Oct 30, 2007 5:39 AM in response to Simon-UK-

Tried this.

Launched FCP and exported a 2 minute segment of a home movie as a QT file. Opened the file in QT, exported as .MOV (just in case the FCP QT file was somehow different).

So now I have a native MOV file. Imported that into iTunes and attempted to sync - still says the iPod can't play this file! So what MOV files can the iPod play if not these?

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Answer 3

Gelcube

Level 1

10 points

Oct 30, 2007 7:20 AM in response to Simon-UK-

Here's what I do with the home movies I shoot with my digital camera...

Copy them to your PC to a folder. It doesn't have to be the music folder, in fact I put them in a separate folder (you'll see why in a second).

Next, import the movie into iTunes.

Once there, go to your movies tab in iTunes, right-click on the movie, and choose "Convert selection for ipod".

Once iTunes is finished converting the file, you'll have two movies named the same thing in your Movies tab. Just right-click and look at the info on each one. The original will be in the folder you specified, the converted one that works on the ipod will be in your music folder. Just delete the original out of iTunes.

It's a little roundabout, but I don't have QT Pro. There should be a way to save it for the ipod in QT, but you'll have to check the documentation, I'm sure. Also, I'm running Windows, so your mileage may vary.

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Answer 4

Simon-UK- Author

Level 4

3,605 points

Oct 30, 2007 8:21 AM in response to Gelcube

There is a way to save for iPod in QT pro, but that involves converting the movie to MP4, which I assume is what 'convert selection to iPod' is doing too. I want to be able to just use a native .mov which the iPod is supposed to be able to play.

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Answer 5

Simon-UK- Author

Level 4

3,605 points

Oct 30, 2007 11:24 AM in response to Simon-UK-

Well, I've given up trying to use a .mov. I've been experimenting with the h.264 codec when converting to .m4v, and by and large, it's very acceptable. As there's no incompatibility issues with the iPod, I think I'll just use this instead.

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Answer 6

Oct 30, 2007 1:18 PM in response to Simon-UK-

iTunes has a function to convert movies (as well as songs that aren't MP3) into the correct format for iPod. iPod only plays MPEG-4 type video files. It doesn't play .MOVs.

Just open the file in iTunes. Right-click it, and in the menu, there's a selection that says "Convert file for iPod". Click that, and iTunes will convert it. It may take a while, depending on the length of the video, but once it's done, there will be a new file that will be MPEG-4. Remove the original file from iTunes.

And there you go. Now it'll sync to your iPod.

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Answer 7

Oct 30, 2007 1:23 PM in response to Simon-UK-

No, iPod doesn't play .MOVs. That's why iTunes converts them to MPEG-4s. MOVs are too large, they'd take up too much space on the iPod, plus, why do you want a native resolution, when the iPod only has like 160 lines of resolution in it's screen? The MPEG-4 that iTunes converts it to will be the proper resolution for iPod's screen. Thus, you get the best picture that you can get on iPod. An .MOV wouldn't be any better.

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Answer 8

Simon-UK- Author

Level 4

3,605 points

Oct 31, 2007 1:53 AM in response to high_rollin

Good Point. At first it seemed that according to Apple's own specs the iPod CAN play movs. But, on closer inspection it appears that they're only referring to the audio component of the movie file - which is a bit confusing.

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