| Author | Message | ||
     Fresnobuell |
Hey you video experts, I have a Go Pro that takes wonderful HD video, however it produces HUGE files. The only way I can watch them is straight from the cam to the TV. This leaves alot to be desired. My computer is not close to being fast enough to handle the large video files. Are there reasonably priced computers out there which can handle/edit this video? What about uploading such video host such as YouTube? Does YouTube automatically decrease resolution to scale it back to an acceptable file size? Or do I just have to shoot video in a lower resolution from the beginning? Thanks. | ||
| Barker |
Its the heavy compression codec. GoPro files are actually microscopic file sizes for HD video. The way it is compressed requires some computer horsepower to play it in real time. What kinda computer are you using? Specs? OS? What software are you using to play it back? Quicktime? The youtube work-around can work, but IIRC youtube limits videos to 10 minutes. You could re-compress it to another codec to make it easier to play, but the flies sizes will grow quick. | ||
| Sifo |
The video card in your computer makes a big difference too. The video decoding can be done with software, but it's much more efficient doing it with hardware. | ||
| Fresnobuell |
Sifo--Please explain "hardware" decoding. Barker--Using an Acer laptop with a 2 year old AMD processor--not your ideal video server for sure. My goal in originally purchased the GoPro, was to be able to store worthy vid on DVDs. Is it feasible to re-compress to a format which is more easily playable from a DVD? That way I could save the gigs on the hard drive and use DVDs as the storage. | ||
| Sifo |
Hardware decoding means that it is being decoded by a processor on your video card. For that to happen your video card has to support the encoding done by the recorder. I have no idea what that means on the specifics of the GoPro HD however. What happens if your video card doesn't support your video encoding is that your computer must use CPU cycles doing the decoding with software decoding. That takes CPU cycles away from everything else the computer does, such as writing a frame of video to your screen, so it slows everything down. I've been out of this stuff for a long time now, so I'm generations behind on anything that is current. I would think that chances are pretty good that the GoPro uses some standard form of encoding the video compression though, so it shouldn't be too hard to find a good video card that handles it. If you are looking to upgrade a laptop your options may be limited. There are laptops that are aimed at handling video though. You just have to check what is supported. | ||
| Sifo |
From the GoPro website... Video Format: H.264 compression, saved as Windows- & Mac-compatible MPEG4 (.mp4) file Find a video card that will handle H.264 compression and you should be set. |
