Convert video for your iPod

Although iTunes 6 promises to convert some kinds of video for iPodviewing, it supports only QuickTime formats (MPEG-4 and MOV). You couldpay $30 for QuickTime Pro 7.0.3, which includes a convenient Movie ToiPod mode, but even that limits the kinds of movies you can convert.

A better solution is Videora’s iPod Converter ($30, free trial).This 6MB utility makes simple work of transcodingyour movies into iPod-compatible MPEG-4 files. It supports all thepopular video codecs, including AVI (DivX), MPEG, QuickTime, and WMV.Even more impressive, it can convert VOB and TiVo To Go files, greatfor ripped DVD movies and TiVo recordings, respectively.

Here’s how to use iPod Converter to put your movies in your pocket:

1. Download, install, and run the program.
2. ClickSetup, then find the Output Videos To field. Choose a folder (MyVideos, for instance) where you’ll be able to easily find yourconverted movies.
3. Click Convert, then click the One-ClickTranscode button. Navigate to the folder containing your videos andselect one or more (hold down the Ctrl key while clicking if you wantto choose multiple files).
4. Click Open, and iPod Converter getsright to work. Now be prepared to wait, as transcoding can taketime–often as long as the movie itself.
5. When your videos aredone converting, fire up iTunes (you need version 6.0.2 or later).Import the new files, then drag them to your iPod.

iPod Converter is, amazingly, a freebie, but the developers encourage donations–and so do we.

About the only format iPod Converter doesn’t support is DVR-MS, whichis used by Media Center PCs for recorded shows. Thankfully, you canstock your iPod with Lost, Desperate Housewives, or prettymuch anything else without paying Apple $1.99 for the privilege. Allyou need is Proxure’s $29.95 MyTV ToGo 3 (www.mytvtogo.com), whichautomatically converts recordings and copies them to your iPod. Thissimple Media Center add-in can be operated using nothing more than yourremote, so you don’t even have to get off the couch.

For video conversion tips for the Sony PSP, check out our Insider Secret: Put video on your PSP.