This software update may include security patches, new or revised settings and features and other items, which will change your current operating system. We encourage you to check this page from time to time for software updates and to always maintain your system to use the latest version of the system software. An update to the PSP® system software was made available on October 26, 2006. If you update your PSP® system, the system software will be version 2.82.
As noted in a previous post, MoviesForMyPod/PSP/Phone does not create files compatible with the Sony PSP 2.7 Firmware. I just flashed (upgraded) a 2.7 PSP to version 2.8 to test with the latest firmware. Indeed, both standard 4:3 and widescreen encoding 16:9 are now again working in 2.8. Use the 2.6-compatibility mode and place your files into a folder named /VIDEO on your PSP memory stick. It appears that the VIDEO folder technique no longer supports the .THM 'thumbnail' files which were used to create the little poster frames that show a preview of the video content. So there's no need to copy those files. Also, it is no longer necessary to use the bizarro M4V0001.MP4 style filenames. Use any descriptive filename you want.
This means our files are compatible with the following PSP firmware revisions:
2.7 Firmware - not supported.(Upgrade your PSP to 2.8)
2.8 Firmware - Supports both 4:3 and 16:9 MPEG-4 video
Therefore, if you want to produce a "Universal" iPod+PSP podcast, stick to 4:3 aspect ratio (not widescreen) and convert it using the 1.5 PSP compatibility mode. This will produce a file compatible with all video iPods, all the PSP firmware versions listed above, QuickTime 6.5 and higher, and usually VLC and other MPEG-4 players.
If anyone has a Creative Zen and wants to write in a compatibility report, please do so.
As of this time, Digigami recommends everyone upgrade to PSP 2.8 Firmware, unless you are running one of the bootloaders. Otherwise, 2.8 looks like Sony finally figured out that consumers don't want to have secret handshakes with their little devices - they just want to play their media files.
Gnarls Barkley | Lyrics | Crazy I remember when, I remember when I lost my mind There was something so present about that place Even your emotions have an echo in so much space
And when you're out there without care I was out of touch But it wasn't because I didn't know enough I just knew too much
Does that make me crazy Does that make me crazy Does that make me crazy Possibly
In all that you were having the time of your life But think twice That's my only advice Cmon now who do you who do you who do you think you are ha ha ha Bless your soul You really think you're in control
Well I think you're crazy I think you're crazy I think you're crazy Just like me
My heroes had the heart to live their lives out on a limb All I remember Was thinking I wanna be like them Ever since I was little Ever since I was little It looked like fun It was no coincidence I've come And I can die when I'm done
Velvet Underground (VU) is Dead (Long live the VU)!
Never forgotten, but highly influential are the Velvet Underground. Aside from the vast assortment of VU-influenced bands you've already heard of, try Katie the Pest (OC-based), Friends of Sound and last, but not least Kill Me Tomorrow.
Whoa! And while browsing for the lastest info on Friends of Sound, check out "Snow Machine". Two free MP3 songs, extremely well-encoded. Big sound!
Gnarls Barkley | Lyrics | Crazy I remember when, I remember when I lost my mind There was something so present about that place Even your emotions have an echo in so much space
And when you're out there without care I was out of touch But it wasn't because I didn't know enough I just knew too much
Does that make me crazy Does that make me crazy Does that make me crazy Possibly
In all that you were having the time of your life But think twice That's my only advice Cmon now who do you who do you who do you think you are ha ha ha Bless your soul You really think you're in control
Well I think you're crazy I think you're crazy I think you're crazy Just like me
My heroes had the heart to live their lives out on a limb All I remember Was thinking I wanna be like them Ever since I was little Ever since I was little It looked like fun It was no coincidence I've come And I can die when I'm done
I enjoy Neil Young's music. I haven't checked out his new album quite yet. I haven't yet listened to all the Neil Young albums I have. Nevertheless, if you like Neil Young, you will also like "The Samples". Originally from Colorado, I believe they are HQ in Vermont now. They have a number of free MP3 downloads for iPod/PSP, including a new song, on their web site.
In the time that elapsed between version 0.993 and version 1.0 of MoviesForMyPod/PSP, I did a lot of thinking about conversion times and performance. I also was intrigued by the various complaints about the quality of Apple's MPEG-4 encoder posted on various message boards around the internet. By exploiting the multi-processing architecture of "Mac OS X" and making some configuration changes to the way we call Apple's MPEG-4 video encoder, I believe we have succeeded in both areas.
To test, I took 48 minutes of archived Apple Ads and compressed them on a Quad G5 machine. I used the Movie for Podcast preset, which I believe is the best choice for Macintosh users who plan to play movies on both their computer and their iPod.
The result: 48 minutes of QuickTime source footage (64 files) compressed to iPod-ready video in an amazing 4 minutes! That is approximately 10x real-time.
As it stands, I consider Apple's MPEG-4 AAC (audio) encoder to produce a better audio quality than the tools based on the open source solutions. So if the open source tools have an edge in picture quality, Apple's audio encoder has the edge in sound quality. So if we are to believe George Lucas "Sound is half the motion picture experience", then there is good reason to choose MoviesForMyPod over ffmpegX or iSquint.
On a separate note...after trying a few other demo products...which never worked, I have found a utility called MoviesformyPod that works great for converting quicktime files to iPod compatible videos...
After reviewing the changes to PSP Video capabilities after the Sony PSP 2.7 firmware upgrade, currently my recommendation is to stay with version 2.6. If you've already flashed to version 2.7, then you have limited options for converting videos to PSP.
On the Mac, it would appear that ffmpegX is the survivor for 320x240 MPEG-4 SP encoding. Unfortunately, the audio encoding in ffmpegX is lackluster. Currently, the MPEG-4 SP streams produced by MoviesForMyPod/PSP play on Version 1.5 through 2.6 firmware, respectively. The PSP H.264 streams produced by ffmpegX are not compatible with 2.7 firmware.
On the PC, I haven't had a chance to run Nero yet, but the Sony-designed (PC/Windows only) $19.95 Media Manager software can convert most videos into "AVC" (H.264) format. It does not support MPEG-4 SP encoding at all. I also just discovered today that the Sony Media manager supports decrypting DVD's for converting music videos. This is a very interesting development.
The one (and only) good thing about the version 2.7 firmware upgrade is the support for MPEG-4 AAC audio encapsulated in the same file format used by iTunes. Yes folks, .m4a audio files can now be played on the PSP (which also plays MP3).
If you like listening to female singer songwriters, you will enjoy our Featured Artist, Heather Nova. I have her video "London Rain" on infinite repeat.
Personally, I find her writing to have an emotional intelligence/depth similar to other female artists such as Alanis/PJ Harvey/Liz Phair, but with a more poetic, understated approach. Compare "Walk this World" (Music Video) with some of Liz Phairs more sexyrotic material and you'll see what I mean.
She also has two new music videos on her www site at heathernova.com - and - they are in QuickTime format, which means, instant iPodding with MoviesForMyPod/PSP/Phone. All you have to do is follow the treasure trail to find the QuickTime movies...
1. Convert any song in your iTunes library into a Ringtone. 2. Send it to your phone with the Bluetooth utility (built into Mac OS X).
Probably the biggest news in MoviesForMyPod/PSP/Phone 1.01 is the addition of AAC ringtone conversion. While less popular here in the USA, in Europe, SymbianOS based phones make heavy use of AAC (MPEG-4) audio.
Joss Stone Video | You Had Me | Right to Be Wrong | Spoiled | Don't Cha Wanna Ride
The Bonus DVD in the [Special Edition] of Joss Stone - mind body soul (Amazon.com $24) contains the following, high quality music videos. I picked it up today at Circuit City for $20.99. I have been wanting to check out Joss Stone, but the bonus DVD pushed me over the edge - now I have a full album in ALAC quality plus 4 videos. To buy on iTunes, the entire collection would have been $27.
Videos on the DVD: 1. You Had Me 2. Right to Be Wrong 3. Spoiled 4. Don't Cha Wanna Ride
I started noticing that most video Podcasters were issuing separate MPEG-4 movies for 5G iPods and PSPs. So, in the new release of our software we have a template which creates one movie which syncs/plays on both devices.
I gave it a thorough test before rolling it out. The first three MPEG-4 videos we issued through the LOBECANDY podcast feed on iTunes were created with MoviesForMyPod/PSP - and they automagically download & sync.
I believe the PSP thumbnail files can also be added to a Podcast feed as a secondary enclosure, flagged with "image/jpeg" as the mime type. After all, the PSP has a built-in web browser...
Posted some samples generated with MoviesForMyPod/PSP using the universal iPod+PSP conversion template which creates a single movie file which plays/syncs to both the Video iPod and the Sony PSP.
It's very early Monday morning, and I'm going to call this one a wrap. 1.0 that is.
Today we add PSP video conversion to MoviesForMyPod, a post-fix moniker, and a bunch of other enhancements to this, our popular free utility for Macintosh fans.
I found and fixed one last minute bug after Midnight, so if you downloaded the software between 9pm (Sun) and 4am (Mon) PST, you probably have the version with the bug. The executable file should be dated April 17, 2006. If not, download again.
For a final test, I converted this clip using the iPod+PSP Template, and then sync'd it to a 5G Video iPod and a Sony PSP v2 firmware. It played on both perfectly. Good luck with your own videos...
"Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley.
LONDON RAIN (Music Video) 
