iPod: The Missing Manual, 5th Edition

Chapter 6. Videos Everywhere

In october 2005, a longtime industry rumor came true: Apple finally launched the iPod’s video-playing era. All new iPods—that’s the standard iPod, not the Nano or Shuffle, mind you—now play video on their gorgeous color screens.

You’re not stuck just watching two- or three-minute music video clips, either. As explained in the previous chapter, the iTunes Store has all kinds of cinematic things to buy: full-length Hollywood movies, episodes (or entire seasons) of certain TV shows, and yes, thousands of music videos, just like the kind MTV used to play back when it showcased videos.

This chapter shows you where to find video files and how to juggle them between computer and iPod—as well as how to convert your own digital movies for screening on your own Shirt Pocket Cinema.

Adding Videos to iTunes

The iTunes Store is chock full of videos you can buy. But sometimes you’ve got your own flicks you want to add to iTunes. No problem. Just drag the file’s icon from your desktop and drop it anywhere in iTunes’ main window, or choose File → Add to Library to locate and import your files. Once you get videos into iTunes, you can play them in iTunes or copy them to your iPod. (Chapter 3 has details.)

Figure 6-1. 

Movies and TV shows have their own icons in the Source ...