DVD converter/player for UX..which is best?

[kcdavid]

I want to buy a dvd player for my UX and watch dvds on it. Which one is best?

[m0nkeyb0y]

I have been using PQ Pocket DVD Suite (http://www.pqdvd.com/watch_dvd_on_pocket_pc.html) which does the trick for me. Other suggest using FFMPEG but I can't comment as I haven't looked at it....

[rgjp]

For player:
TCPMP with this plugin installed: http://www.rarewares.org/files/aac/tcpmp.aac.zip
It will play everything. Drains the batteries a fair bit tho.

[kcdavid]

Monkeyboy, I think I saw that one on Handango.com and it did look good. Thanks. and thanks, rgjp for ur info.

[yclept]

I use TCPMP, too, and have had no problems with it. It doesn't run .wmvs, though (unless I'm missing a plugin).

For converting, I'm totally freeware: DVD Decrypt to rip .vobs from DVDs, and Auto AGK (Auto Gordian Knot) to create .avis. You have to fix one of AGK's subprograms (Virtual Dub Mod) if you have Symantec Antivirus 10. It involves replacing the .exe. If you scour Doom9's video forums, you can find out more. I really like Auto AGK, and especially appreciate its batch feature. Just load up a bunch of files and let it run all night. You can even request it to shut down your computer when it finishes.

The one feature I would really like is the ability to select a certain timespan of video to convert. Right now I create the .avi and then edit it. It feels a bit inefficient.

FFMPEG looks like it does a lot more, but I don't even understand how to untar it on a PC (JAmerican has written about how to create .mp4s with it, though). Other freeware converters you might want to try are AviNet (requires Windows .NET 2.0 to run) and StaxRip.

[Dolomite]

I want to buy a dvd player for my UX and watch dvds on it. Which one is best?
Handbrake is by far the easiest and best DVD ripper I have come across so far. It is for MacOS X, but the source code is available so their might be other ports floating around. http://handbrake.m0k.org/ Anyway if you are running MacOS X this is the ripper to use.

[LanMan]

Has anyone tried Lathe? I'm curious about it since it was mentioned over at PA:

http://palmaddict.typepad.com/palmaddicts/2005/07/lathe_2_click_v.html
http://www.omniquiti.com/store_02.html

[frozerino]

Handbrake is by far the easiest and best DVD ripper I have come across so far. It is for MacOS X, but the source code is available so their might be other ports floating around. http://handbrake.m0k.org/ Anyway if you are running MacOS X this is the ripper to use.
You just made my day! olé
I was looking for something like this for months.
thnx :D

[Dolomite]

You just made my day! olé
I was looking for something like this for months.
thnx :D

glad i could help! :)

[m0nkeyb0y]

I've had another play with Pocket DVD suite and found that it is capable of shrinking existing DivX movies to fit your memory card. I downloaded a 700MB movie the other night and have just ripped it down to a 256MB memory stick. The picture gets a bit blocky when there is a lot of movement in the screen, but it is still perfectly watchable.

[kcdavid]

change of subject kind of--freeware, can one use it for player and converter??? (anyone, anyone?)

[bdhu2001]

The builtin Movie Player comes with software Image Converter that allows you to play MP4. Clie Pet's FMP also allows you to use the free IC to view movies. Both programs are small (i.e. already on your UX or small file size) and easy to navigate. FMP allows you to rename the file. TCPMP,doesn't run .wmvs is larger and drains the battery faster. However, it's can view avi files w/o further conversion. I tried Pocket DVD a few years ago and the sound quality was bad. I'll re-install and see if it has some updates for the sound, because it was simple and easy to use.

[kcdavid]

bdhu2001, are you saying that there is a--DVD--movie player And converter already on the UX 50 to use? How do I access it? (no hard drive to go to for searching). Is it on the OS menu? Then how to activate it? Thank you for your information.

[DCBAKER]

bdhu2001, are you saying that there is a--DVD--movie player And converter already on the UX 50 to use? How do I access it? (no hard drive to go to for searching). Is it on the OS menu? Then how to activate it? Thank you for your information.
No DVD player actually installed on the UX. There is a Media Player on the UX which will play movies which you have converted using Image Converter on your PC. Image Converter comes on the software CD that comes with a UX. There are also downloadable versions, some of them can be found on these forums I believe.

To convert a DVD movie with Image Converter, you first have to convert the DVD movie to a format which Image Converter can read. AVI works I believe. Fairuse Wizard will convert DVDs to .avi. Once you have the .avi file, Image Converter can convert it to a format which Media Player will read (.mqv I believe).

When Image Converter has produced the .mqv file you simply move the file on to a MS (I forget which folder...) and open it from Media Player.

A simpler solution is to convert the movie using Fairuse and install TCMP on your UX and watch it with that. TCMP does drain power more quickly than the built in Media Player, but the movie conversion process is much simpler and takes far less time.

[arth1]

The built-in "Movie Player" reads both Mobile Quicktime Video (.MQV) as converted by "Image Converter" and MPEG-1 movies from any program. Chances are that many if not most movies that people watch with the battery draining TCPMP will show just as well with "Movie Player". The trick to watching MPEG movies is that they have to be named a certain way, and reside in a specific folder:

/MSSONY/MOML0001/MOV00001.MPG
/MSSONY/MOML0001/MOV00002.MPG

After this, they will show up under the "MPEG Movie format" pulldown page in Media Player.

The quicktime movies made by Image Converter have the following format:
/MQ_ROOT/100MQV01/MOV00001.MQV
/MQ_ROOT/100MQV01/MOV00002.MQV

Also note that you can open the MQV files just fine with Quicktime. On a PC, you might want to assign the MQV file type to QuickTime.
Also note that you have to stay at QT version 6.5, as 7.x is incompatible with Image Converter. Apple changed the format in a non-backwards compatible way.

Regards,
--
*Art

[kcdavid]

Wow, see i understand this stuff, because its all in 1, 2, 3 format. Thanks for the instructions BOTH of you. (why i can cook--its step by step) I will make a flowchart or list---and try both instructions (one, then the other for saving). You are saying: I install Image Converter to the UX (AND PC?) then convert the dvd; then i save using arth 1's instructions; then use the Media Player on the UX for viewing---also, is converting to AVI possible using Image Converter??? (run-on sentences I can do too).

[kcdavid]

Thanks again. ALSO, do I use the above format, ARTH 1, for saving AVI converted movies???

[DCBAKER]

Wow, see i understand this stuff, because its all in 1, 2, 3 format. Thanks for the instructions BOTH of you. (why i can cook--its step by step) I will make a flowchart or list---and try both instructions (one, then the other for saving). You are saying: I install Image Converter to the UX (AND PC?) then convert the dvd; then i save using arth 1's instructions; then use the Media Player on the UX for viewing---also, is converting to AVI possible using Image Converter??? (run-on sentences I can do too).
Image Converter is a PC only program for converting a variety of movie formats to a format which the UX can play. It is not installed on the UX. Media Player which is installed on the UX will play the movie converted by IC on the PC. IC converts only to .mqv. If you want to convert to .avi, you have to use a program like FairUse Wizard. You'd probably only want to convert to .avi if you were going to use a player other than MediaPlayer on the UX - like TCMP. Search the threads here on playing movies. There are a variety of ways of converting and playing and each has it's pros and cons. The biggest pro for converting to a format for playing on the built in Media Player is that battery use is much more economical.

[kcdavid]

See, what a lack of info. will do to a person's plans? THANK YOU. DCBAKER

[DCBAKER]

See, what a lack of info. will do to a person's plans? THANK YOU. DCBAKER
You're welcome. Hope it all works for you.