Apple iPod with Xbox 360 - FAQ

Apple iPod's with Xbox 360 FAQ's...

To listen to unprotected AAC files from your iPod music player

1. Go to the Marketplace area of the Xbox Dashboard and select Game Store, All Games.
2. Select Optional Media Update twice (once from All Games and again from the Optional Media update screen), then Confirm Download.
3. Once your download is complete, select Continue and return to the Xbox Dashboard (press BACK or B three times).

Now you can just plug in your iPod and listen to the music from it!

Q: Can I play music from my iPhone or iPod Touch?

A: No. The iPhone and and iPod Touch use a different mechanism for storing music than a traditional iPod, and the Xbox 360 console can't play music from those sources. However, you can browse pictures stored on these devices through the Media area of the Xbox 360 Dashboard.

Q: Can I play videos from my iPod?

A: No. The Xbox 360 console doesn't play videos from an iPod.

Xbox 360 Video Codec Chart

This chart shows which format of video can be streamed from a certain device.

Xbox 360 Video Playback - FAQ

Xbox 360 Video Playback FAQ's...

Q: What does the Xbox 360 console support for AVI?

A: The Xbox 360 console supports the following for AVI:

• File extensions: .avi, .divx
• Containers: AVI
• Video profiles: MPEG-4 Part 2 (Simple Profile and Advanced Simple Profile)
• Video bit rate: 5 Mbps with resolutions of 1280 × 720 at 30 fps.
• Audio profiles: Dolby® Digital (2 channel and 5.1 channel), MP3
• Audio max bit rate: No restrictions.

Q: What does the Xbox 360 console support for H.264?

A: The Xbox 360 console supports the following for H.264:

• File extensions: .mp4, .m4v, mp4v, .mov, .avi
• Containers: MPEG-4, QuickTime
• Video profiles: Baseline, main, and high (up to level 4.1)
• Video bit rate: 10 Mbps with resolutions of 1920 × 1080 at 30 fps.
• Audio profiles: AAC, 2-channel, Low Complexity
• Audio max bit rate: No restrictions.
  
  

Q: What does the Xbox 360 console support for MPEG-4?#

A:The Xbox 360 console supports the following for MPEG-4:

• File extensions: .mp4, .m4v, .mp4v, .mov, .avi
• Containers: MPEG-4, QuickTime
• Video profiles: MPEG-4 Part 2 (Simple Profile and Advanced Simple Profile)
• Video bit rate: 5 Mbps with resolutions of 1280 × 720 at 30 fps.
• Audio profiles: AAC, 2-channel, Low Complexity
• Audio max bit rate: No restrictions.

Q: What does the Xbox 360 console support for WMV (VC-1)?

A: The Xbox 360 console supports the following for WMV:

• File extensions: .wmv
• Containers: ASF
• Video profiles: WMV7 (WMV1), WMV8 (WMV2), WMV9 (WMV3), VC-1 (WVC1 or WMVA) in simple, main, and advanced up to level 3
• Video bit rate: 15 Mbps with resolutions of 1920 × 1080 at 30 fps.
• Audio profiles: WMA7/8, WMA9 Pro (stereo and 5.1), WMA Lossless
• Audio max bit rate: No restrictions. See the question about max bit rate, resolution, and frames per second.

Q: What are the "real" max bit rate, resolution, and frames per second that the Xbox 360 console supports for all the different formats?

A: The Xbox 360 console does not block video from playing based on a maximum bit rate, resolution, or frames per second. Each codec's maximum has been tested using various video playback sources. Content with a higher bit rate is not blocked, but playback quality may be less than optimal. Use higher bit rates at your own risk.

Q: What is the maximum video file size that the Xbox 360 console supports?

A: The maximum file size for an MPEG-4 Part 2 or H.264 file is 4 GB. However, Windows Media Player 11 and the Zune software support streaming WMV files larger than 4 GB.

Q: What are the different ways to play video content on the Xbox 360 console?

A: You can play video from a USB 2.0 FAT 32 removable drive or optical media, and by streaming from the Zune software or Windows Media Player 11.

Q: Can I play music from my iPhone or iPod Touch?

A: No. The iPhone and and iPod Touch use a different mechanism for storing music than a traditional iPod, and the Xbox 360 console can't play music from those sources. However, you can browse pictures stored on these devices through the Media area of the Xbox 360 Dashboard.

Q: Can I play videos from my iPod?

A: No. The Xbox 360 console doesn't play videos from an iPod.

Q: Does the Xbox 360 console display embedded artwork for MPEG-4 Part 2 or H.264 files?

A: Yes. You can embed artwork smaller than 400 KB in the video files.

If you have anymore questions about Video Playback on the Xbox 360, please give me a message over Xbox Live or Comment here!

Achievement Unlocked.mp3 Sound Download

Heres the Achievement Unlocked.mp3...

.Zip Download

.Rar Download

Its a great message alert tone for a mobile phone!

Enjoy!

Xbox 360 Boot / Startup Sound on Windows XP - Guide

This is a guide on how you can change your PC’s startup sound to be that of the Xbox 360.

Note: This is for Windows XP.

You will need the Xbox.360.Boot.Sound.wav audio file to do this, you can download it here…


.Zip Version – Download

.Rar Version – Download


Do the following…

• Save the sound clip to C:\Windows\Media
• Open up Control panel
• Open up Sound and Audio Device
• Click on the tab for Sounds
• Under “Program Events” locate “Start Windows.wav” – Click on Browse and locate the Xbox 360's boot.wav that you just downloaded
• Once you have it click on apply to set the new .wav.
  
  

And that’s all there is to it!

If you found this useful, or need any help... Please leave a comment or message me on Xbox Live.

Thanks!

Good Luck Mr Lee!

Iain Lee is starting his new show on Virgin Radio tonight @10pm!

He has been keeping a Video Diary on YouTube about his move to national radio.

I first started listening to Iain when he was on LBC 97.3 Radio, however without warning he was cut from the radio station in November.


Hes an Xbox 360 gamer and general gaming enthusiast just like the rest of us, and loves to get his ass handed to him on Xbox Live by the listeners!

Ive even interviewed him on Whagi.com.

If you like good honest comedy, then its worth tuning into!

Importing Xbox 360 Games - Guide

In this article ill explain how to import Xbox 360 games from Asia, and what the risks are!

The import site I'm using for this article is Play-Asia

A few facts about Play-Asia:

• Play-Asia is based in Hong Kong
  
  
• The time in Hong Kong is 8 hours ahead of UK GMT so please bear that in mind when sending an e-mail or making an order.
  
  

A few facts about ordering from Play-Asia:

• To ensure your order is despatched and received in the quickest time possible, I recommend placing your order on a Sunday night (Monday morning in Hong Kong) as it will most likely be shipped that day.
  
• Please make sure you order 1 game at a time to reduce your chances of having to pay an import fee.
  
  

Play-Asia accepted payment methods:

• PayPal
  
  
• Credit Card
  
  
• Bank Transfer
  
  

A few facts about Importing:

• Importing games and accessories is just like ordering games from a UK website , you add the item to your cart , pay for your item , the item is then shipped , you receive your item a few days later.
  
• Please bear in mind that any packages coming into the UK over the value of £17.00 is subject to Import / VAT charges of 17.5% of the amount of the parcel and shipping , Play-Asia will always mark the true value of the parcel however customs will not usually bother with £1 - £5 over that limit.
  
  

A few facts about the games:

• The games Play-Asia sell are not PAL UK games but are either NTSC (USA) or NTSC-J (Jap/Asia). However all the region free games will be in full English and have full English boxes / instruction manuals.

Before you import any games, you need to make sure that they will work on your Xbox 360!

In the UK, all Xbox 360's are PAL.

You can check if the game will work on a PAL system, by checking the Regional Compatibility Guide.

If a game is region free, you will see this green tick in the PAL box shown here...

Each Region-Free game costs around £21.33 (depending on exchange rate) with £1.65 being the cheapest postage option , It should take Play-Asia no longer than 24 hours to despatch the game if it is in stock, and should take around 4-10 working days to reach you. However in some cases it can take up to 2 weeks.

Your parcel may be delayed at customs in the rare event they impound your package until you pay the import tax fee, I strongly recommend ordering 1 game at a time to reduce the risk of your parcel being stopped and to ensure your parcel will reach you in the quickest time possible.

If you found this useful, or need any help... Please leave a comment or message me on Xbox Live.

Thanks!

Xbox 360 DivX / XviD - Guide

This is my short guide on where & how to download High Quality DivX Videos and play them on your Xbox 360.

For this to work, you need to have either Media Sharing setup from your PC to Xbox 360, or an External USB device which you can plug up to your Xbox 360 and view the videos off.

If you are going to use an External Hard Drive, you need to make sure its formatted with the FAT32 File System. Otherwise the Xbox 360 will not be able to play videos from it.

And id like to point out now that there is no converting / encoding needed in this, all you need to do is download the video from Stage6, pop it into your sharing folder, and away you go!



The best site ive found to download high quality videos from is "Stage6". Stage6 is owned and ran by the DivX Company. (So everything is fully compatible with the Xbox 360!)

Here is some background info about the Stage6.



Follow the following to get glorious HD Quality Videos onto your Xbox 360....


Useful links...

Stage6.com Xbox 360 Related Videos

Stage6.com 1080p Related Videos

Stage6.com 720p Related Videos

Once you have found the video that you want to watch on the Xbox 360, you need to do the following steps...

(Its worth mentioning, that its best to use Internet Explorer for the following)



1. Got to view the video and wait for the video menu to appear, you then need to download the video by clicking the arrow pointing down. Screenshot.

2. Click "Save" on the file download prompt. Screenshot.

3. Then select where you want to save it, id suggest the "My Videos" folder in your "My Documents". Important - You need to select "All Files" in the "Save As Type" drop down box. You then need to give the video a name in the "File Name" box, then you must type .avi after the name. Screenshot. The reason why you need to put the .avi at the end is because the Xbox 360 seems to have a few problems recognizing and playing .divx files, if you save it as a .avi, then you wont have any problems! (Screenshot)

(Move the video to an external device if you are using one such as an external hard drive).


Once you have done that, its time to go onto your Xbox 360 and play the video. (No extra encoding / converting is required!)

Make sure you have selected the correct source of the video file on the Xbox 360, whether it be your PC or External Hard Drive.

The video should show up like this. Screenshot.



Thats it, done.

If you found this useful, or need any help... Please leave a comment or message me on Xbox Live.

Thanks!

A new year, a new start!

Hello!

Just over 6 months ago I stopped blogging, and now ive decided to start it back up again.

I want a central place where I can keep all my articles / reviews so people can find them easily.

Everything will be about nothing but Microsoft's Xbox 360!