Can't play .AVI on my TV

[lostsoul65]

I can play MOV and MPG but I can't play AVI or WMV so if I convert, should I convert everything to MOV because that's what my new camera records and it plays great on my TV?

[Baldrick]

Please give more information. Avi with what video codec? Which TV? What does the manual say?

[lostsoul65]

I don't know the video codec. I have a 55 inch vizio tv and I use a USB port for my pictures. The manual doesn't give all the kinds of video. When I tried to play a AVi it froze my TV and I had to un plug it to get it to work again. I've never converted from one format to another for pictures and video so I don't know the pros and cons of converting over to MOV which works for me and the WMV are from my web cam.

[Bjs]

When asked about tv you need to specify the exact model not just 55" Vizio.

Example: M series could be any number produced in the M series ... changes were made during the M series production which make trouble shouting "avi wont play" questions difficult ... for that matter any recent tv's where model is not specified.

The "avi" froze which indicates it supports playback ... again we have no info on the avi file involved, please use mediainfo to find out the internals of this avi ... post in reply.

However it could be incorrect video scale, fps, unsupported audio, unsupported codecs, etc.

[lostsoul65]

I really don't understand all of this so my question is "Can I change my AVI and WMV over to MOV so that it will play on my TV?" and if not then I need to buy a book and learn about this because if I have to know all the details of my TV, something isn't right. Are I need to buy some kind of book for Dummies!

Also the converter that is advertised on this page don't work to convert to MOV and it don't work to convert WMV

[Baldrick]

A mov can contain anything from dv to mpeg4 video and your tv does not support all kind of mov video types.

But if you post the details from the mov we might be able to help. You can use mediainfo, open mov, view-> text.

[lostsoul65]

The model of my TV is M3D550KD and I called up tech support on this about file extensions and they didn't know anything. I Down loader the mediainfo and it's the same converter I downloaded before and I get no information about it or even know anything about it except to convert from one extensions to another and that's it with no other information. So again how am I suppose to give details on the .mov my camera takes which is a Nikon S100. I'm sorry that I don't know anything about this and I just need to learn about the Video formats and if you know of any tutorials that might help me that would be great. I don't know anything about this, cell phone etc. because I retired from the computer field 10 years ago. Thank you for trying to help me and I will try anything you say.

[jman98]

MediaInfo is NOT a converter. It provides details about your files that might be helpful to people here to understand why some don't work. Follow Baldrick's instructions again in post #6 or you're basically just wasting our time. I'd also advise you to post the details of your AVI file that doesn't work. Calling up tech support for TVs and DVD/BD players is rarely helpful by the way. Vizio is made on the cheap in China so I would not expect them to have the best tech support people. I have a Vizio TV and I like it by the way, but I don't play files on it via the TV's USB slot.

[Baldrick]

Didn't I just write that?

In mediainfo open the mov file, under View change to Text. Copy everything and paste in this thread.


But it's usually tricky to get same format as the camera using software only.

[lostsoul65]

I'm going to try and upload a AVI and MOV file from mediainfo. Sorry I downloaded the wrong file last time. Thank you for helping me.

[Mr.Delusional]

Unless you posted the wrong model number of your television. It doesn't support any videos. It only plays mp3's and jpeg's, that's it. (page 42 -44) So to quote Cornucopia rtfm. http://store.vizio.com/documents/downloads/hdtv/M3D550KD/UM_M3D550KD.pdf

[lostsoul65]

If you take a look at page 7 it will tell you that it does play video. I have a S100 Nikon camera and I take videos (.MOV) and it plays and sounds great on my TV with my flash drive on my USB port. It also plays MPG but I want it to play WMV and AVI though a converter. I'm new at this so can you help.

[Baldrick]

Have you tried make any avi with divx/xvid or mp4? That avi jpeg/mjpeg is not any good format for media players.

Convert to mp4 with handbrake and to avi divx/xvid with for example freemake video converter and choose to avi and select tv quality (xvid mp3) under preset.

[Mr.Delusional]

I stand corrected. On page 7 it does say it plays video. Unfortunately with no mention of format or codecs. It literally just says video. I guess when writing a manual they were to lazy to list that information. If I was you I would bug the hell out of Vizio until they tell you what videos that television supports. As listed in the manual for file extensions. The file must end in a supported file extension. And then they just list mp3, jpg, etc. That my friend is ******* lame. They couldn't just list the extensions? "Etc"? What a joke.

[lostsoul65]

I called Vizio and they didn't know anything so I guess I'll just have to use trial and err. I need to educate myself on this so I have a better understanding so when I ask questions on this forum I don't sound so dumb. Thank you for your imput.

[orsetto]

Televisions vary in their ability to play videos directly from USB. Few will play everything you throw at them, the sole exception I've seen being top-of-the-line Samsungs from a couple years ago (which do in fact seem to play just about anything at all).

It is usually a mistake to convert videos just to suit one particular television. Conversion takes time, and offers many opportunities for you to ruin the video unless you know exactly what you're doing and what technical settings to change. Conversion can also reduce the picture quality quite noticeably. If you enjoy downloading videos from web sources, be aware that 9 out of 10 people who upload videos have no idea WTF they are doing, and their files are corrupt or out-of-spec. A PC will usually play them, but a TV or BluRay or DVD player may have trouble. Trying to repair or convert WMV and other random video downloads is rarely worth the trouble.

The best thing to do in most cases is leave the videos as-is, esp WMV files. Stop trying to make the TV do everything: no matter what "USB features" the TV mfr claims, they are often only partially compatible. Instead of plugging a USB stick directly into the TV, and using the TV interface, buy yourself a separate universal media player like the Western Digital or even this one from NewEgg. Plug the player into your TV, and plug your USB stick or camera cards into the player. The dedicated player accessory almost always has a much wider range of video compatibility than the TV itself, and greater ability to play corrupt, damaged, or incorrectly formatted videos.

Unless you're an experienced geek who fully understands the settings, using something like Handbrake to convert videos can be an exercise in futility and frustration. Spend a little extra money to get a proper media player accessory for your TV, and you'll be able to just play the videos as-is.

[lostsoul65]

orsetto, Thank you, I am going to do just as you say which will save me a lot of headaches. I didn't know anything about this but now I do and I will buy one which I'm sure is going to save me a lot of frustration. Thank You, Glad you posted.
I just order the one you suggested and I'll get in it in 2 days

[orsetto]

lostsoul65, I posted my reply before the details of your bad AVI file appeared in my browser. While my advice still stands, and I think you will get much more success using the separate media player, I do agree with what others have said after seeing the specs of your file: it is very strangely put together. AVI files don't typically contain JPEG video + PCM audio. Since you seem able to play it on your PC, there's a very good chance it will also play on an outboard media player, but it might not. In that case you would need to convert it into a more standard format, which is not always an easy task with such weird files.

External media players like the ones I suggested are very forgiving of screwed-up files, and will generally play them OK. But when they can't play them, its a good indication that the file is a hot mess that would be very difficult to convert or fix. Such files should be set aside for playback only in your PC.

[lostsoul65]

Again orsetto, thank you for your advice. I'm just trying to play old video files but 90% of my Video files that I want to play on the TV already plays great which are MOV. If any video files don't play with what I bought then if I really want to play them I will just have to educate myself because I don't understand anything about video files now but that doesn't mean I can't learn. Thanks again.

[jman98]

lAVI files don't typically contain JPEG video + PCM audio.

They also don't have audio with a sampling rate of 11 kHz. That must sound awful! I would not be surprised for any media player device, including a TV, to have major problems with that video codec and audio sampling rate.

[lostsoul65]

I have 2 AVI files, one from my old camera and one from a Japanese camera bought in Japan and because it was bought in Japan I wonder if that would be a problem. MY wife is Japanese and maybe I should compare are 2 AVI files?

[smrpix]

From the manual, your S100 camera files are MOV (video: H.264/MPEG-4 AVC, audio: AAC stereo). Use mediainfo on a working file to ascertain video and audio bitrate. You can convert your avis to match.

[lostsoul65]

Thank you smrpix, I downloaded mediainfo and will use it.

[Baldrick]

I'm still waiting for you to actually try convert to some other formats? It might support mp4(h264) or avi(divx,xvid). It's easier than converting to mov.

But if you really want to convert to mov can you try...hmm....mpeg streamclip is the only one that I have tried....or buy quicktime pro.

[smrpix]

Winff can also convert to .mov under the quicktime presets. Presets can be copied and tweaked as needed.

[Baldrick]

Yep, winff looks easier than mpeg streamclip. I can't remember the last time I made a mov....

So go a head and try convert one of your avi or wmv file to mov with winff using the quicktime h.264(high quality) preset.

[lostsoul65]

I downloaded winff for a converter, also an editor, and an Info program from this forum. It's a little over whelming and I am a newbie. Are there any books I can buy from amazon.com or tutorials you can recommend so I can at least know what I'm doing? Thank You

[Baldrick]

Winff shouldn't be that complex.

Start WinFF.
Click Add to load your video file.
Under Convert to choose Quicktime.
Under Preset choose Quicktime h.264(high quality).
Under Output folder change where the new mov files should be stored.
Click on Convert.
A black box appears. Wait until it's done.
Check the output folder.

[lostsoul65]

I converted AVI over to MPEG-4 which I quess is what I'm suppose to do because they don't have a mov?

[Baldrick]

Winff has MOV. Under Convert to choose Quicktime and under Preset choose Quicktime h.264(high quality).

quicktime=mov.