Microsoft KB Archive/928192

= Information about the video file formats that are supported by the Zune software =

Article ID: 928192

Article Last Modified on 6/7/2007

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APPLIES TO


 * Zune software

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SUMMARY
This article describes the video file formats that are supported by the Zune software. This article also describes how you can configure the Zune software to be the default player for certain types of video files, provides an overview of the file types that you can add to the Zune library, and lists some of the options that you can use to synchronize (sync) content to your Zune device.



Configure the Zune software to be the default player for video files
You can configure the Zune software to be the default player for the following file types:
 * Windows Media Video files (.wmv)
 * MPEG-4 Video files (.m4v)

Although the Zune software can play some QuickTime video files (.mov), you cannot configure the software to be the default player for this kind of file.

To configure the Zune software to be the default player for different types of files, follow these steps:
 * 1) Click Options, point to Playback, and then click More Options.
 * 2) On the File Types tab, select the file types for which you want the Zune software to be the default player, and then click OK.

To change the default file types that the Zune software plays, you must sign in to the computer as an administrator or as a member of the Administrators group.

For more information, open the Windows Help and Support Center, and then search for the following phrase:

To change the program that opens a file

Add video files to your Zune library
The Zune software will automatically search for appropriate video files, and then add the following video file types to your library:
 * Windows Media Video files (.wmv)
 * MPEG-4 Video files (.m4v)
 * Some QuickTime video files (.mov)

Sync video files to your Zune device
The Zune software syncs video from your library to your Zune device. To optimize the quality level or to format the file for playback on the device, the Zune software may convert the video file during the sync process depending on the format of the source file.

Note Conversion does not affect the original file.

Although you cannot turn off the conversion process for video files, you can influence the quality level of the conversion.

To adjust the quality level for converted files, follow these steps:  Start the Zune software. In the left pane, right-click the Zune device, and then click Advanced Options. The properties dialog box for the Zune device appears. Click the Quality tab, and then select the quality settings that you want for music and for video.

Note The actual bit rate of the file may be slightly different from the bit rate that you select. You cannot specify a quality setting for converting pictures.



You can also configure the Zune software to use additional computing power to help increase the quality of converted video files. To do this, follow these steps:
 * 1) Start the Zune software.
 * 2) Click Options, point to Sync, and then click More Options.
 * 3) On the Devices tab, click Advanced.
 * 4) In the File Conversion Options window, select the Choose quality over speed when converting video (increases the conversion time) check box.



MORE INFORMATION
For more information about how to use Windows Movie Maker and Windows Media Encoder to convert video files into .wmv files, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

932614 How to convert video files to a file type that is supported by the Zune software and the Zune device

For more information about how to use video on your Zune device, visit the following Web site:

http://www.zune.net/en-us/support/howto/play/enjoyvideo.htm

Keywords: kbexpertisebeginner kbpubtypekc kbzuneamericasportal kbhowto KB928192

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