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How to Load Video on your PSP
The PlayStation Portable boasted such amazing features before and during its release. But, as many early buyers soon discovered, not everything was as simple or easy as they had described. One of the biggest disappointments for me was the idea that I could load my own video content onto a memory stick duo and watch it on the PSP. I quickly found out that this process was a very difficult one. The first thing I did was call my brother, who purchased his PlayStation Portable almost a full year before I did, hoping he had unlocked the mystery of loading video on a PSP. “Dude, it’s impossible. You gotta buy their UMD movies. It won’t work.” That seemed stupid! It had to work. Sure, I got my PSP mostly for games. But dang it, I wanted to watch movies on it too. I began my quest across the sea of internet web pages in search of the answer.
After almost an entire month of web searching, I began to get some answers. Most everyone agreed that it was near impossible to load video. But some professed that they had done it and it could be done. All I needed was an answer to the simple question, “How?” The Operating System version on my PSP was 2.6. I knew at the time I bought mine, they had already released the download for 2.8, but not wanting mess things up further I just left the OS alone. PlayStation’s 2.8 Operating System professed a new “Video Loading Solution” which provided an easy way to drag and drop your video files into a folder on your PSP newly formatted Memory Stick Duo into the “Video” folder. I hadn’t heard anything about if this worked yet, or not. And knowing that many people were against updating the Operating System, I moved on, leaving that 2.8 OS upgrade as my fall back.
Basics about PSP Video
So a few things I have learned. First, you do need a Memory Stick Duo to load videos on your PSP. I’d say get the biggest one you can, because even my 2 GB only holds 3 movies. You will have to format your Memory Stick Duo to work on your PSP, which means it’s not going to work in your other devices. At least it didn’t work in my Sony HDV camera or my Sony still camera. Formatting it is easy. You put it in your PSP, and your PSP asks if you want to format the memory stick. Formatting your Memory Stick Duo will erase any data currently on it, so be sure to back up all data before you commit your memory stick to be PSP only.
Another thing I quickly found out is the PSP is very picky on file type and on naming conventions. Your movie file must start with M4V followed by five numbers. It doesn’t matter what numbers you use. So, for example, it must look like "MPV12345.mp4" else your PSP will not see the video. Also, it must be in the MP_ROOT >100MNV01 folder on your Memory Stick.
Be aware though, if you’re planning on using the H.264 codec, the naming convention and location are slightly different. You’ll have to put those files in the MP_ROOT >101ANV01. They need to be named starting with MAQ instead of MPV, producing a file name looking like “MAQ12345.mp4”. Also, resolution, frame rate, and sound quality have to be just right for your PSP to be able to play the video. The resolutions available for the Sony PSP are 368x208 and 320x240 either at 15 or 29.97 frames per second. To avoid headache of trying to keep all these rules, it’s best to find a PSP video converter program that will work best for you.
Video Software for PSP
Be aware that while Sony sells the PSP (PlayStation Portable) Media Manager software which claims to be “The easiest way to move music, movies, and more to your PSP system.” it seems to not be as easy as Sony claims. My favorite bug free program for loading video on your PSP is PSPVideo9. I’ve tried using programs like QuickTime Pro to make generic Mp4 files in hopes of playing them on my PSP. Even using the exact same settings every time, some videos I converted would play while others wouldn’t. Some had sound sync issues and others had no sound. With all this frustration, I was happy to find PSP Video 9. Another popular free downloadable PSP video conversion software is called Xilisoft PSP Video Converter. While this software is showing up on more and more tutorials, I’ve found it not as simple or user friendly as PSP Video 9. While it seems to produce the same quality video, the clunky software interface really slows me down.
If you don’t have your own video to load on your PSP, you’re not lost yet. One of my favorite sites catering to PSP video content is PSP.connect.com. It’s a site powered by Sony hosting PSP videos you can download for free. It’s pretty “advertising heavy” with logos and websites plastered all over the videos. But I think it’s a great way for Sony to bridge the gap and say “sorry” for making videos such a pain to load on the PSP. All that said, there’s nothing wrong with Free PSP videos. It’s also nice because you’ll have video content to test on your PSP, to make sure you’re at least loading the video in the right place.
While I mainly got my PSP to play video Games, I really expected it to be a great Audio Mp3 player and Video Mp4 Player. Mostly because Sony said that it would be. So to have such grand complications with loading video made me a bit unsatisfied at first. But once it was figured out, it worked great. So, assuming that you’ve found the best way to convert your video to Mp4 PSP friendly format, I’ll run through the process of getting your video loaded on the PSP.
How to Convert Video
The best way I’ve found to convert your video to play on the PSP is using the software PSP Video 9. While programs like QuickTime Pro can convert video into Mp4 format, PSP Video 9 gives you more options to customize your final video to play best on the PSP. After Installing and Launching PSP Video 9, the process for converting video is quite easy. First, click "Convert" on the menu to go to the Convert section. Next, click the "One-Click Transcode" button and select the file you want to convert. If there are no files in your queue, conversion will begin immediately, otherwise the video will be stored in your queue.
Once the conversion is complete, click on the Copy button to go to the Copy page. On the left hand side of the copy page, you can see all the PSP video files on your PC. Select the video you just converted and click the "Copy Video to PSP" button. Now, provided you had enough free space for the file, the file should appear on the right hand side of the page meaning the file is now on your PSP.
You're done! You should now see the video after selecting Video from the PSP Menu.
How to Load Video on a PSP
With your Memory Stick Duo formatted for the PSP, you're ready to transfer your first video. You have two ways to transfer files onto your PSP. You can transfer files while your PSP System is connected to your computer via a USB cable or move video files to your Memory Stick media that is inserted into a Memory Stick Reader.
Option 1: Direct to PSP System.
• To use the Direct to PSP method, connect your PSP System to your computer using your "USB-A to Mini-B" cable.
• Turn the PSP on then scroll to select "Settings".
• Select "USB Connection" by pressing the "X" button.
• Now look at your PC - a new window will appear, called "Removable Disk". Select the "Open folder to view files using Windows Explorer" and click on "OK."
• If there isn’t all ready a folder called MP_ROOT on your memory stick, create the MP_ROOT folder on the root directory of your Removable Disk directory.
• Next, copy either the M4Vxxxxx.MP4 and M4Vxxxxx.THM into the 100MNV01 folder within the MP_ROOT folder or the MAQxxxxx.MP4 and MAQxxxxx.THM files into the 101ANV01 folder within the MP_ROOT folder.
Option 2: Transfer to Memory Stick
• To use the Transfer to Memory Stick method, insert your Memory Stick media into a Memory Stick Reader or Memory Stick-compatible computer.
• Now look at your PC - a new window will appear, called "Removable Disk". Select the "Open folder to view files using Windows Explorer" and click on "OK."
• If there isn’t all ready a folder called MP_ROOT on your memory stick, create the MP_ROOT folder on the root directory of your Memory Stick.
• Next, copy either the M4Vxxxxx.MP4 and M4Vxxxxx.THM into the 100MNV01 folder within the MP_ROOT folder or the MAQxxxxx.MP4 and MAQxxxxx.THM files into the 101ANV01 folder within the MP_ROOT folder.
• Then remove the Memory Stick and insert it into the slot on the side of the PSP.
So now you’re done! In Home mode on your PSP, you should be able to go to the Video option, and select your video. Just by hitting “X” you should then be playing video on your PlayStation Portable and basking in the joy of a wonderful product.
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