MiTube

February 5, 2007 in apple, applications, diversions, film, ipod, os x, tv, video | 2 comments

‘Back home after an absolutley wonderful trip to Costa Rica with family and friends.

On our way home we had a six hour layover in Atlanta. While Jacinthe was engrossed in her book, and Luca was busy with some rented DVDs, I was reminded what a great travel companion the iPod video can be. Time flew by as I caught up on episodes of 30 Rock, Rome, Studio 60 and the Henry Rollins Show ;-)

Recently, some friends and co-workers asked me about the best way of getting video on the iPod, especially given the Canadian version of the iTunes Store doesn’t sell TV shows or feature length films. So here are a few (Mac) applications I’ve come to depend on to get great looking video onto the iPod:

  • Handbrake (freeware): Converts DVDs directly to iPod compatible MP4 video files.
  • ViddyUp (US $9.95): Converts almost any video file format, such as AVI, to iPod compatible MP4 file format.
  • TubeSock (US $15): Grabs video clips from YouTube and converts them to iPod compatible file formats.
  • Also great for travel is MacTheRipper (freeware) which rips DVDs to your hard drive. Use it to move your movies to your laptop before a trip and leave the discs at home.