Apple Releases iMovie 8.0.5, Adding Support for New iFrame Video Format

[WhoPhD]

Just a quick example of where a new file format might be useful: in general, real frames don't exist in modern video, if you consider a frame to be a sort of snapshot in time.

Excuse me? DV, DVCPRO, Pixlet, AVC-Intra ... these are all i-frame-only codecs, just like "iFrame".

Besides, the concept of frames and "snapshots in time" exist in every codec ... it just takes you longer to decode it, that's all. There are timecodes and discrete temporal points in every digital video ever made, and you can call upon QuickTime to take you to that frame and "show" it. Yes, it might require the decoding of several p-frames and a preceding i-frame, but so what?

Actually, where the whole "snapshot in time" concept starts to fall down is in CMOS sensors, just like the ones used by Sanyo Xacti. Shoot some 60fps video and wobble the camera side-to-side, and you'll see the whole frame of video get a large slant in it, changing direction when you do. That's because the frame is "scanned" over time, from top to bottom, instead of captured in an instant as you would get in a CCD camera.

The concept was just the same in tube cameras (going back to the early 1990s now), so, no big deal.

Having said all that, I'm a proud owner of an HD1000 and the HD2000 and HD2000A look like brilliant products that I would recommend. QuickTime works *perfectly* with the MP4 files that come out of the cards ... in fact I don't know what the hell all the whinging is about when people complain about Sanyo and compatibility. QuickTime Player is the "Notepad" of video, but it works equally well in Final Cut Pro. (Never used Express, hehe).

Maybe it's the Windows users complaining. They were never good at standards in Windows. I bet it's Windows Movie Maker that refuses to handle MP4 files, even though the rest of the consumer electronics universe knows how.

What's more, these huge frames quickly eat up bandwidth, reducing the amount available to record other kinds of frame data.

Well that's why this new iFrame codec may be a bit of a non-starter. It probably chews up space, like 25Mbps the way DV did. It's amazing that I upgraded from SD to HD and lost 60% of my (non-temporary) disk space requirements as a result.

A new format that was designed to be read bi-directionally would allow for more efficient editing and smaller file sizes or higher quality by eliminating the need for these extra big frames. As would a file format that removed the need to perform this activity while editing, perhaps by saving smaller resolution cues in place of full fledged snapshots.

It's all cool in theory, up to a point. If you're playing with 25Mbps you can get something like iFrame 960x540x30fps, or you could equally get h264 1920x1080x60fps ... I know which I would choose.

Of course, professional formats are 100Mbps or 200Mbps or more, and once you're at that size, just go for i-frames only why not!

In the professional world, if you want to do clever editing and tricks like chroma-key, i-frames only are still a Very Good Idea.

CK.

 

[Tuxie]

I've never once used iMovie because it doesn't support any video files I've ever tried to load. Does this update change any of that?

It's because you haven't installed Perian.

 

[Arisian]

It's because you haven't installed Perian.

Does perian support importing into imovie? I was under the impression that perian only helped playback.

whatever the case may be, Perian is pretty much a 'must have'... love it.

 

[marmotmammal]

Great!

Being able to edit without transcoding is stellar. Saves a lot of time. Specs for the Sanyo VPC-FH1ABK seem good; I wonder what the video footage actually looks like. That camcorder is fairly inexpensive, too ($500).

Video guru Larry Jordan predicts FCP at some point will offer iFrame native editing. Hope it happens.

 

[toke lahti]

Real specs?

Is there any additional info released about technicalities of iFrame?
What bitrates?
Is it really i-frame only?
Just 4:2:0?
Etc.?

 

[TMay]

Well that's why this new iFrame codec may be a bit of a non-starter. It probably chews up space, like 25Mbps the way DV did. It's amazing that I upgraded from SD to HD and lost 60% of my (non-temporary) disk space requirements as a result.

It's all cool in theory, up to a point. If you're playing with 25Mbps you can get something like iFrame 960x540x30fps, or you could equally get h264 1920x1080x60fps ... I know which I would choose.

With the prices dropping and capacities increasing, there isn't any reason not to use all of the available bandwidth of flash memory. SDHC 6 easily supports 24Mbps, the high standard for AVC, but I can see having an alternate capability in the same camera for intraframe recording. My question would be whether I could get a 720p intraframe for the same 24 Mbps bandwidth that would rival AVC Lite? That to me would be a better addition to AVC HD devices than the low profiles that are typically supported, and that largely go unused. I do recognize that iFrame is targeted at the mobile device user.

It seems to me that an iFrame 720p targeted to AppleTV and Youtube would be a better call ultimately than the just released iFrame standard, at a penalty of about 2x the data rate. There isn't any reason that this couldn't happen in the future.

 

[Fwink!]

Well I got the Xacti in that does iframe. The pistol grip model. I's pretty cool. Maybe I'm spoiled with the mp4 format straight off the cam, but all the resolutions seem pretty workable in imovie. 720p @30 looks good and is manageable. I may need a class 6 card though, because 1080p @ 60 Full HR mode seems a little blocky to my eyes.

I'm pleased with the unit, but also a little underwelmed, as the special iframe format isn't so special after all. I'm tempted to try and return it and get the canon at a similar price point, though the canon does avchd and requires transcoding.

I'll try to check back if anyone has question.

 

[zedsdead]

Well I got the Xacti in that does iframe. The pistol grip model. I's pretty cool. Maybe I'm spoiled with the mp4 format straight off the cam, but all the resolutions seem pretty workable in imovie. 720p @30 looks good and is manageable. I may need a class 6 card though, because 1080p @ 60 Full HR mode seems a little blocky to my eyes.

I'm pleased with the unit, but also a little underwelmed, as the special iframe format isn't so special after all. I'm tempted to try and return it and get the canon at a similar price point, though the canon does avchd and requires transcoding.

I'll try to check back if anyone has question.

Even though you have to transcode, the Canon's have been the best consumer cameras for several years now. I have an HF100, and love it.