AVI to MP4 for movies on iPad

Hello all!

Getting set up with my macbook and iPad mini to start working my way through my movies/tv shows, but ran into a hiccup. Most of my video files are AVI. As suggested, I picked up a copy of Miro to convert them, but when I view them as MP4 I get maybe a minute or two in it before the video cuts out (or freezes in a frame) and the audio continues.

Not sure if I am using the wrong format (if not MP4, then what?), or if I was doing something wrong with the conversion. My first batch was an entire season of a show, so I tried it again with just a single file and the same thing happened.

Suggestions?

And you used the iPad preset in Miro?

Correct. Tried both the iPad preset as well as a direct to MP4. Both result in a video on the iPad that plays for the first 3-4 minutes with no issue, then will either lock on the image while playing audio, or displays a blank screen with audio.

Sounds like a either a corrupted file or just Miro's not up to the task.

Here's another option: Air Video. It's $3 and lets you either just stream AVI movies in their own format to your iPad from your Mac, or it can convert the movies to iPad format so that they will work locally.

I will try it again with a few different files, see if that is the issue. Still not convinced it is not user error.

Appreciate the help!

You could also try Handbrake. I believe they both use ffmpeg to do the heavy lifting but it's possible that you'll have more luck with it.

Maybe a bit late to the party but there's Video Monkey too

That can look up and add metadata and thumbnails to the output mp4 and even add it to iTunes for you if you like

I've never been able to fault Handbrake, but having recently gone through this I now.no longer convert video files but play them in their original format. I do this with Player Xtreme which I downloaded free from the Apple Store. I needed help which was given by Chas-M. In the end the process is effortless. I have yet to try to play ISO video files - that's my next step. You'll find a thread on this in the past few days (I'm on my iPad and don't know how to paste a link).

Glad to hear that worked out for you.

Appreciate the help everyone!

Spent the 'weekend' clearing out files, and tried to convert things again with no luck. Could it be an issue of memory? At this point I am going to try handbrake, and if that falls through might look for something to play it in the AVI format.

byzantinefalcon said:

Appreciate the help everyone!

Spent the 'weekend' clearing out files, and tried to convert things again with no luck. Could it be an issue of memory? At this point I am going to try handbrake, and if that falls through might look for something to play it in the AVI format.

Click to expand...

Ill give a thumbs up for HandBrake, But make sure you Toggle the Presets to use the iPad Preset, and with HB you can even set a mb limit that you want the movie to fit into.
Play around with HB as you will find its the best out there and has never failed me and quite a few movies
It will convert a movie in time wise as to the length of the movie and depending on presets. You can also Que. Videos to be encoded so set a list of 10-15 movies and let it run. I usually do this and let it run over night, if i have a batch to do.

ITS A GREAT APP and Free

I have one movie that won't convert properly with Handbrake. It's "The Wicker Man". I can rip the DVD to ISO file easily enough, and the ISO file exhibits the menus and options of the DVD. The DVD/ISO file has the main movie and a fairly extensive commentary, both selectable in the main menu. But when I use HB to convert the ISO file to any format I've tried, M4V and AVI to date, the resulting flat file is only of the commentary - the original movie is nowhere to be found. I have converted maybe a hundred DVDs via ISO to M4V and this is the only one to give me this problem. Does anyone have any ideas?

I appreciate that ripping a DVD is possibly illegal in the USA, and I am in no way wanting to encourage illegal activity. I'm also told that in the same country it ma be illegal to strip regional restrictions from a commercial DVD, and the same comment applies, even though in this latter case I find it hard to believe it is true. But these activities ate NOT illegal in most of the world, subject to some restrictions and caveats, and many members of this forum live in those countries. My enquiries are purely of a technical nature, and do not comprise a recommendation to anyone to do these things for themselves. On a practical level I am one of many people who lives in different "regions" as envisaged by the device manufacturers and possess many DVDs from more than one region. It is absurd and quite unreasonable to expect me and others like me to purchase playing devices for each region's DVDs. The same is true of course of Blu-Ray disks, and I am told that required regionalization restrictions have been a major factor in inhibiting the growth of sales of these disks. The commercial protectionist practice, which somehow they seem to have managed to get into US law, has backfired.

FYI i would keep it quiet about ripping your own DVD's seeing this forum follows US Law, and breaking the Encryption Code is ATM illegal in the US, you might want to re-word (Edit) your post so we can help, or the Mods WILL shut this down.......

Just a friendly warning

TattooedMac said:

FYI i would keep it quiet about ripping your own DVD's seeing this forum follows US Law, and breaking the Encryption Code is ATM illegal in the US, you might want to re-word (Edit) your post so we can help, or the Mods WILL shut this down.......

Just a friendly warning

Click to expand...

I have added an explanation to my post above yours.

My next day off I will give it a go, see if I can get it to work.

peterbj7 said:

But these activities ate NOT illegal in most of the world

Click to expand...

Irrelevant. This forum follows US law. What the law is like where you are has no bearing whatsoever.

I'm sorry we can't help you, but we can't help you with that.