Anthony1
03-13-2007, 12:30 AM
When I plunked down 647 smackers on the 60GB PS3, I never even remotely considered the fact that the 60 gig version had the memory stick inputs on it. It didn't cross my mind once. Only reason I decided to pay an extra 100 clams is because of the built in Wi-Fi. I've been using Wi-Fi in my house for over a year now, and the built in Wi-Fi factor was the key reason for me. Had it not been for that, I would have gladly chosen the 20gig model and saved a bit of cash. But recently, the memory stick slot has proved invaluable to me. Is it because it's an easy method to transfer photos or mp3's to the PS3? Nope. Although I'm sure that's an extra bonus. It's the fact that I can grab any old mp4 video file, and slap it onto the memory stick and then pop it into my PS3 and watch it on the big screen.
The really cool thing is that you can take higher resolution and even High Def videos, in various formats, and convert them to mp4, and then watch them on your PS3. It only takes a wee bit of effort to get things working. I enjoy watching various video podcasts. Mostly gaming based video podcasts. Things like the 1upShow or Gamespot On the Spot or IGN Weekly. Basically any video podcast you can think of. Sure, you can easily watch it on your computer, but then you are limited to this little window on your screen, and scratchy sound coming from your computer speakers or headphones, and you are usually sitting in something much less comfortable than a nice sofa. With the PS3, I can take these video podcasts, download them, convert them to mp4, slap them onto a memory stick, and voila! I'm watching high def gaming shows at my leisure on a big screen. No commercials, fast forwarding , rewinding, pausing, etc, etc. It's very nice. Remember back when TechTV was on, and they actually had some good shows? Or when G4 had some good shows? Well, with video podcasts, you can find alot of good gaming shows out there, and it's easy to watch those shows on your big TV via the PS3. All it takes is a memory stick and a free software program. The program is called "Super". If it's a quicktime video that you are going to convert to mp4 for the PS3, you can use Quicktime Pro to convert it easily, but you have to pay some snaps to get Quicktime Pro. Super is free. It doesn't always work perfectly, but once you get accustomed to it, it works pretty damn well.
Here is a little quide I found on how to use Super to convert various video files to mp4:
To convert to mp4 using Super
Super Tutorial
1. Open Super
2. Right-Click on Main Window and choose Add Multimedia File(s) and select your Input File.
3. Choose mp4 from drop-down list 1.
4. Make Sure drop-down list 2. is set to H.264/AVC
5. Make sure drop-down list 3 is set to AAC
6. Double click Input File Name in the list near the bottom of the window and this will open the file details box.
7. Set Video size to match that of Input File, or leave on NoChange
8. Set Aspect to Match Input File Loaded.
9. Set Frame/sec to match Input File loaded or as near as possible.
10. Set Bitrate to match Input File loaded or as near as possible.
11. Check Hi Quality
12. Unchec Top Quality
13. Check 48K Audio.
14. Click H264 Profile and choose Main 4.1, click H264 again to close box.
15. You can set a Duration to encode by clicking Other Opts
16. Set Audio to 44100
17. Set Channels to 2
18. Set Bitrate to anything between 128 - 192 or higher.
19. Leave DVD Language at default unless your Input File has multiple Audio tracks.
20. Click Encode Active Files and be patient
I know some people are going to say, "Just stream it from your PC to your Xbox 360, a hundred times easier". Well, that maybe true if you have all your connections wired. I don't. I'm running everything wireless, and I can't stream video from my PC to my 360 with everything being wireless. I would have to run ethernet cables all over the damn place, and my wife won't have it. I would have to hire a professional to hide all the wires perfectly, and it would cost too much damn money to do it. I've thought about getting a A + G router (I'm using a regular G router right now), but even if I had a A + G router, either the 360, or the PC, would still probably need to be hardwired to the router for it to be smooth enough for High Def video. My router is located near my kitchen, very far away from my computer room, and also far away from my 360. So, it's either run wires everywhere or just deal with crap the way it is now.
The really cool thing is that you can take higher resolution and even High Def videos, in various formats, and convert them to mp4, and then watch them on your PS3. It only takes a wee bit of effort to get things working. I enjoy watching various video podcasts. Mostly gaming based video podcasts. Things like the 1upShow or Gamespot On the Spot or IGN Weekly. Basically any video podcast you can think of. Sure, you can easily watch it on your computer, but then you are limited to this little window on your screen, and scratchy sound coming from your computer speakers or headphones, and you are usually sitting in something much less comfortable than a nice sofa. With the PS3, I can take these video podcasts, download them, convert them to mp4, slap them onto a memory stick, and voila! I'm watching high def gaming shows at my leisure on a big screen. No commercials, fast forwarding , rewinding, pausing, etc, etc. It's very nice. Remember back when TechTV was on, and they actually had some good shows? Or when G4 had some good shows? Well, with video podcasts, you can find alot of good gaming shows out there, and it's easy to watch those shows on your big TV via the PS3. All it takes is a memory stick and a free software program. The program is called "Super". If it's a quicktime video that you are going to convert to mp4 for the PS3, you can use Quicktime Pro to convert it easily, but you have to pay some snaps to get Quicktime Pro. Super is free. It doesn't always work perfectly, but once you get accustomed to it, it works pretty damn well.
Here is a little quide I found on how to use Super to convert various video files to mp4:
To convert to mp4 using Super
Super Tutorial
1. Open Super
2. Right-Click on Main Window and choose Add Multimedia File(s) and select your Input File.
3. Choose mp4 from drop-down list 1.
4. Make Sure drop-down list 2. is set to H.264/AVC
5. Make sure drop-down list 3 is set to AAC
6. Double click Input File Name in the list near the bottom of the window and this will open the file details box.
7. Set Video size to match that of Input File, or leave on NoChange
8. Set Aspect to Match Input File Loaded.
9. Set Frame/sec to match Input File loaded or as near as possible.
10. Set Bitrate to match Input File loaded or as near as possible.
11. Check Hi Quality
12. Unchec Top Quality
13. Check 48K Audio.
14. Click H264 Profile and choose Main 4.1, click H264 again to close box.
15. You can set a Duration to encode by clicking Other Opts
16. Set Audio to 44100
17. Set Channels to 2
18. Set Bitrate to anything between 128 - 192 or higher.
19. Leave DVD Language at default unless your Input File has multiple Audio tracks.
20. Click Encode Active Files and be patient
I know some people are going to say, "Just stream it from your PC to your Xbox 360, a hundred times easier". Well, that maybe true if you have all your connections wired. I don't. I'm running everything wireless, and I can't stream video from my PC to my 360 with everything being wireless. I would have to run ethernet cables all over the damn place, and my wife won't have it. I would have to hire a professional to hide all the wires perfectly, and it would cost too much damn money to do it. I've thought about getting a A + G router (I'm using a regular G router right now), but even if I had a A + G router, either the 360, or the PC, would still probably need to be hardwired to the router for it to be smooth enough for High Def video. My router is located near my kitchen, very far away from my computer room, and also far away from my 360. So, it's either run wires everywhere or just deal with crap the way it is now.