Database Users

MP4 playback issues

Hi,
I am trying to understand why I can't playback certain MP4 files. I have tried Coreplayer (1.3.0), Pocket player (4.1), WMP and album and none of them are able to playback the files. As they are MP4 files, I thought they would be able to play without needing to be re-encoded. I have patched with Neo's beta 1 driver pack. Details of the media are below:
===========================================================
This one appears to be a straight forward MP4 file. It plays in the players, but only the audio, the video playback is blank. The coreplayer website says it should playback H264 AVC files, so I thought it would play this.
Format : MPEG-4
Format profile : Base Media
Codec ID : isom
File size : 318 MiB
Duration : 28mn 54s
Overall bit rate : 1 540 Kbps
Encoded date : UTC 1970-01-01 00:00:00
Tagged date : UTC 1970-01-01 00:00:00
Video
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : [email protected]
Format settings, CABAC : Yes
Format settings, ReFrames : 2 frames
Codec ID : avc1
Codec ID/Info : Advanced Video Coding
Duration : 28mn 54s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 1 407 Kbps
Width : 832 pixels
Height : 468 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16/9
Frame rate mode : Constant
Frame rate : 25.000 fps
Standard : PAL
Resolution : 24 bits
Colorimetry : 4:2:0
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.145
Stream size : 291 MiB (91%)
Encoded date : UTC 1970-01-01 00:00:00
Tagged date : UTC 1970-01-01 00:00:00
Audio
ID : 2
Format : AAC
Format/Info : Advanced Audio Codec
Format version : Version 4
Format profile : LC
Format settings, SBR : No
Codec ID : 40
Duration : 28mn 54s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 125 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Channel positions : L R
Sampling rate : 48.0 KHz
Resolution : 16 bits
Stream size : 25.9 MiB (8%)
==================================================================
I guess the one below doesn't play as it is a .ts file rather than straight MP4. Core player recognises it, but wont play it, apart from showing the first few frames. Is there a player that would do it?
Format : MPEG-TS
File size : 389 MiB
Duration : 29mn 52s
Overall bit rate : 1 820 Kbps
Video
ID : 256 (0x100)
Menu ID : 1 (0x1)
Format : MPEG-4 Visual
Format profile : [email protected]
Format settings, BVOP : No
Format settings, QPel : No
Format settings, GMC : No warppoints
Format settings, Matrix : Default
Duration : 29mn 52s
Bit rate : 1 619 Kbps
Width : 720 pixels
Height : 576 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16/9
Standard : PAL
Resolution : 24 bits
Colorimetry : 4:2:0
Scan type : Progressive
Writing library : Lavc51.50.0
Audio
ID : 257 (0x101)
Menu ID : 1 (0x1)
Format : MPEG Audio
Format version : Version 1
Format profile : Layer 3
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 128 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 48.0 KHz
Resolution : 16 bits
Language : English

Have you compared the file properties you can't play with the file properties of a file you can? It can give a clue of what's the problem... A bit rate, some format...

As far as I know MP4 is only a container. The streams inside are coded using a codec (e.g. H264, etc...) much like divx coded stream in avi file. So maybe the file you can't play is coded with some codec the player does not understand. Try reencoding it with MP4forHD (can be found around the forum) to x264 stream in .mp4 file and see if it works.

tkolev said:
As far as I know MP4 is only a container. The streams inside are coded using a codec (e.g. H264, etc...) much like divx coded stream in avi file. So maybe the file you can't play is coded with some codec the player does not understand. Try reencoding it with MP4forHD (can be found around the forum) to x264 stream in .mp4 file and see if it works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
sorry for no replies, i've been v. busy at work . I will try re-encoding it and see what happens, but it would be better if I could play them straight.

[Discussion][Updated on Nov.16 ]HTC HD2 video playback [email protected] Video

hi everybody, ever since i read RacerII's 720p showoff video thread, i found the original helicopter show off video. it's 1080p video can be downloaded on here.
part1.rar
part2.rar
i checked the RacerII's video the resolution is not enough, format settings is not good enough. I believe HD2 can play a further advanced video. so i use TMPGEnc.XPress converter and put up a higher settings for this video. HD2 plays this video very very smooth. you can see the settings below:
[I]D:\Movies\FFOUTPUT\[email protected]
General
Complete name : D:\Movies\FFOUTPUT\[email protected]
Format : MPEG-4
Format profile : Base Media
Codec ID : isom
File size : 48.7 MiB
Duration : 1mn 41s
Overall bit rate : 4 018 Kbps
Encoded date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13
Tagged date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13
Video #1
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : [email protected]
Format settings, CABAC : No
Format settings, ReFrames : 1 frame
Codec ID : avc1
Codec ID/Info : Advanced Video Coding
Duration : 1mn 41s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 3 890 Kbps
Width : 720 pixels
Height : 480 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16:9
Frame rate mode : Constant
Frame rate : 29.970 fps
Standard : NTSC
Resolution : 24 bits
Colorimetry : 4:2:0
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.376
Stream size : 47.1 MiB (97%)
Language : English
Encoded date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13
Tagged date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13
colour_primaries : BT.601-6 525, BT.1358 525, BT.1700 NTSC, SMPTE 170M
transfer_characteristics : BT.601-6 525, BT.601-6 625, BT.1358 525, BT.1358 625, BT.1700 NTSC, SMPTE 170M
matrix_coefficients : BT.601-6 525, BT.1358 525, BT.1700 NTSC, SMPTE 170M
Audio #2
ID : 2
Format : AAC
Format/Info : Advanced Audio Codec
Format version : Version 4
Format profile : LC
Format settings, SBR : No
Codec ID : 40
Duration : 1mn 41s
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 127 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Channel positions : L R
Sampling rate : 44.1 KHz
Resolution : 16 bits
Stream size : 1.54 MiB (3%)
Language : English
Encoded date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13
Tagged date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13[/I]
my moded video DOWNLOAD HERE
guys , strictly speaking, this is only the 480p video, i also believe that this still doesn't reach HD2's playback limit. would you have some ideas/advices,etc. Please post here , we can learn together.
Nov. 11 GMT+8
continuing testing yesterday. use NVIDA Cuda (H.264) to encode my videos. HD2 has the ability of playing 800x480 with bitrate of 3900kbps 30fps(only on small file) it's very smooth, pretty clear. BUT! a complete movie(14gb's 1080p blue-ray ISO movie) will get as large as 2.33GB after the encoded. wmp or htc album won't open it, because its so large file?
Nov. 16 GMT+8
for the settings of the following is very ok to play on htc hd2 (even in large file)
resolution: 800x480
Container: MP4
Codec: H.264, 2-pass
format Profile: HIGH
format Level: 4
Bitrate: 2000kbps-2400kbps
bitrate mode: constant/variable both ok
CABAC: On
scan type: progressive
frame rate: 30fps

Nice , and it already looked very good.

This is great news. What software did you use to play this video?
JohnQ said:
hi everybody, ever since i read RacerII's 720p showoff video thread, i found the original helicopter show off video. it's 1080p video can be downloaded on here.
part1.rar
part2.rar
i checked the RacerII's video the resolution is not enough, format settings is not good enough. I believe HD2 can play a further advanced video. so i use TMPGEnc.XPress converter and put up a higher settings for this video. HD2 plays this video very very smooth. you can see the settings below:
[I]D:\Movies\FFOUTPUT\[email protected]
General
Complete name : D:\Movies\FFOUTPUT\[email protected]
Format : MPEG-4
Format profile : Base Media
Codec ID : isom
File size : 48.7 MiB
Duration : 1mn 41s
Overall bit rate : 4 018 Kbps
Encoded date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13
Tagged date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13
Video #1
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : [email protected]
Format settings, CABAC : No
Format settings, ReFrames : 1 frame
Codec ID : avc1
Codec ID/Info : Advanced Video Coding
Duration : 1mn 41s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 3 890 Kbps
Width : 720 pixels
Height : 480 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16:9
Frame rate mode : Constant
Frame rate : 29.970 fps
Standard : NTSC
Resolution : 24 bits
Colorimetry : 4:2:0
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.376
Stream size : 47.1 MiB (97%)
Language : English
Encoded date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13
Tagged date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13
colour_primaries : BT.601-6 525, BT.1358 525, BT.1700 NTSC, SMPTE 170M
transfer_characteristics : BT.601-6 525, BT.601-6 625, BT.1358 525, BT.1358 625, BT.1700 NTSC, SMPTE 170M
matrix_coefficients : BT.601-6 525, BT.1358 525, BT.1700 NTSC, SMPTE 170M
Audio #2
ID : 2
Format : AAC
Format/Info : Advanced Audio Codec
Format version : Version 4
Format profile : LC
Format settings, SBR : No
Codec ID : 40
Duration : 1mn 41s
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 127 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Channel positions : L R
Sampling rate : 44.1 KHz
Resolution : 16 bits
Stream size : 1.54 MiB (3%)
Language : English
Encoded date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13
Tagged date : UTC 2009-11-08 11:13:13[/I]
my moded video DOWNLOAD HERE
guys , strictly speaking, this is only the 480p video, i also believe that this still doesn't reach HD2's playback limit. would you have some ideas/advices,etc. Please post here , we can learn together.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Hi JohnQ, could you please encode/try a sample with Cabac on, you might have to play it with Coreplayer though as Album or WMP probably can't handle it, it will improve the quality of the video. Coreplayer should be able to play it smoothly, even without hardware acceleration.

grandpanda said:
This is great news. What software did you use to play this video?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dude why quote the whole crap

grandpanda said:
This is great news. What software did you use to play this video?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im using HTC ALBUM or windows media player pocket

From
http://www.mobile-review.com/pda/review/htc-hd2-part1.shtml
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

kersh said:
From
http://www.mobile-review.com/pda/review/htc-hd2-part1.shtml
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
CorePlayer benchmark was published already. What worries me a bit more is that they claim in that review that the hardware accelerated HTC Album doesn't support .avi, contrary to what xmoo here is saying.

razorblader said:
Hi JohnQ, could you please encode/try a sample with Cabac on, you might have to play it with Coreplayer though as Album or WMP probably can't handle it, it will improve the quality of the video. Coreplayer should be able to play it smoothly, even without hardware acceleration.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i tried to enble the CABAC, HTC album and wmp performs better, but on core player, its so laggy

Hi JohnQ, thanks for your test!

why hd2 is so weak in comparison of its competitors ?

manuelcalavera said:
why hd2 is so weak in comparison of its competitors ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i dont know . all i could guess is the open gl2.0 issue. but im not sure.

i converted my MKV 1080p videos to mp4 800x482
i play it in album application
and i watched carlitos way and my bloody valentine on it, not even a little bit of lag on it.
and the details in the video and sound is really great.

mrturq said:
i converted my MKV 1080p videos to mp4 800x482
i play it in album application
and i watched carlitos way and my bloody valentine on it, not even a little bit of lag on it.
and the details in the video and sound is really great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what is the bitrate/encoder/progressive or not/format profile you are setting?

JohnQ said:
i tried to enble the CABAC, HTC album and wmp performs better, but on core player, its so laggy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for testing this, that's a disappointment. Did it lag in HTC album and WMP as well, just not as bad as in Core Player or would you say it was basically smooth?

I think we shoulsn't conclude HD2 playback performance by using Core Player, As all of us know Core Player doesn't use hardware graphics acceleration at all.
Only player we have left to use is which ship with device in this case WM Player & HTC Gallery Player.
I'll be getting mine tomorrow, and am going to push the device to its limit.
I remember my old Nokia E90 could play 800X352 with bitrate of 1.9Mbit 23 or 25 fps. Am expexcting HD2 to hit atleast 3.8Mbit on same frame rate.
I always use NVIDA Cuda (H.264) to encode my videos.
I wont be testing 1280X720 videos as deivce can only show up 800X480.
Lets come tomorrow.

hassan said:
I think we shoulsn't conclude HD2 playback performance by using Core Player, As all of us know Core Player doesn't use hardware graphics acceleration at all.
Only player we have left to use is which ship with device in this case WM Player & HTC Gallery Player.
I'll be getting mine tomorrow, and am going to push the device to its limit.
I remember my old Nokia E90 could play 800X352 with bitrate of 1.9Mbit 23 or 25 fps. Am expexcting HD2 to hit atleast 3.8Mbit on same frame rate.
I always use NVIDA Cuda (H.264) to encode my videos.
I wont be testing 1280X720 videos as deivce can only show up 800X480.
Lets come tomorrow.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
YES, Im testing it on HTC ALBUM/WMP. I already tested yesterday. use NVIDA Cuda (H.264) to encode my videos. HD2 has the ability of playing 800x480 with bitrate of 3900kbps 30fps(only on small file) it's very smooth, pretty clear. BUT! a complete movie(14gb's 1080p blue-ray ISO movie) will get as large as 2.33GB after the encoded. wmp or htc album won't open it, because its so large file?

JohnQ, the bitrate for 800x480 H.264 on the HD2 can be a lot lower and you will still get excellent quality and much smaller file sizes.
Taking the chance to sound like a broken record, does HTC Album or WMP play a H.264 mp4 with Cabac on and a bitrate of say 1200 kbps smoothly?
Thanks for answering my questions.

JohnQ said:
YES, Im testing it on HTC ALBUM/WMP. I already tested yesterday. use NVIDA Cuda (H.264) to encode my videos. HD2 has the ability of playing 800x480 with bitrate of 3900kbps 30fps(only on small file) it's very smooth, pretty clear. BUT! a complete movie(14gb's 1080p blue-ray ISO movie) will get as large as 2.33GB after the encoded. wmp or htc album won't open it, because its so large file?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm how about if you use SUPER to encode and use DIVX insted of H.264, I mean MP4 as contanir with DIVX codes at same bitrate.
I would try less bitrate if i use H.264 to keep the size small.
Also we have to remember that device has very new firmware.

JohnQ said:
Width : 720 pixels
Height : 480 pixels
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How come you didn't make it 800x480??

Acceptable Video Playback

Hy guys, I tryed several times to make a video format that runs with great quality and at the same time fast enough to watch it with joy.
I have the Titanium ENERGY ROM that came out on may 1.
TCPMP was allready in the ROM
installed the CorePlayer v1.3.6 Build-7427 for PPC
and using the WinMedia Player that also was in the ROM
have on the PC the Xilisoft Video Converter Ultimate, HTC Encoder, the Any Video Converter and the MP4 for HD programs.
the only succesfully smooth video playback was the KillBill named movie that's properties are in the Core Player :
Format : Video Files (AVI, DIVX, GVI)
Duration : 1:46:10.800
Filesize : 595333 KB
Video : MPEG4 Video
Codec : Core ASP
Video Size : 640x272
Frame Rate : 25.000
Audio : MPEG Layer-3
Codec : CoreMP3
Audio Format : 48000 Hz 2 Ch
Data Bit Rate : 83 kbit\s
Played Frames : 18
Dropped : 0
Played FPS : 25.000
this is the only video that runs so perfectly that's almost too good to be true.
so the problem is that i can't find the good settings for any of the converters to give the output vide that' the same as that MAGICAL ONE.
If someone have an idea, please tell !!!!!
THX anyway.

Try BS Player with ARMv7 Codec to play MKV HD !

Hi guys
I try BS player today and play bottom mkv hd video clip buttery that was so laggy with other players
Recommend to try that
Format : Matroska
File size : 125 MiB
Duration : 3mn 48s
Overall bit rate : 4 587 Kbps
Encoded date : UTC 2010-12-30 11:37:22
Writing application : mkvmerge v4.0.0 ('The Stars were mine') built on Jun 6 2010 16:18:42
Writing library : libebml v1.0.0 + libmatroska v1.0.0
Video #1
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : [email protected]
Format settings, CABAC : Yes
Format settings, ReFrames : 5 frames
Muxing mode : Container [email protected]
Codec ID : V_MPEG4/ISO/AVC
Duration : 3mn 48s
Nominal bit rate : 4 000 Kbps
Width : 1 280 pixels
Height : 720 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16:9
Frame rate : 23.976 fps
Resolution : 24 bits
Colorimetry : 4:2:0
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.181
Title : Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me
Writing library : x264 core 98 r1649 c54c47d
Format : MPEG Audio
Format version : Version 1
Format profile : Layer 3
Codec ID : A_MPEG/L3
Codec ID/Hint : MP3
Duration : 3mn 48s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 48.0 KHz
Resolution : 16 bits
Video delay : 20ms
Title : Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me
Writing library : LAME3.97
Audio #3
ID : 3
Format : AC-3
Format/Info : Audio Coding 3
Codec ID : A_AC3
Duration : 3mn 48s
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 384 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Channel positions : L R
Sampling rate : 48.0 KHz
Video delay : 13ms
Stream size : 10.5 MiB (8%)
Title : Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me
Text #4
ID : 4
Format : SSA
Codec ID : S_TEXT/SSA
Codec ID/Info : Sub Station Alpha
Title : Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

do you try Dice player ?

dirwdirw said:
do you try Dice player ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No i dont
but at least 7-8 player tries and no one can play this file without lag

Can you upload the clip?

sontin said:
Can you upload the clip?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i can but it take 1week to upload with a 128kbps internet !!
this is the link
http://www.mediafire.com/?v95tbtbx5pyl24w

where can i get the BS player?... can u upload it?

The music video is playable with dice. There are a few seconds which are not smooth with [email protected], but it's okay.

https://market.android.com/details?id=com.bsplayer.bspandroid.free&hl=en

Its FREE
BsPlayer superiority of the dicePlayer is that the Bs is FREE

Nice find. Playback seems to be better than with MX Video Player because it doesn't skip the audio track during harder to decode portions. I think this is due to the "frame drop" feature.
However, I have one huge problem that makes this app unusable to me, I cannot seek. When I try to seek it just goes right back to the beginning. Is anyone else having this problem or do I have something set wrong in options?

Does this have subtitle srt support?

Yes it does.Local and online too

thanks to bringing this great player up, I'm using it now and I think it's better than moboplayer.

Haven't played too much with this yet but so far I like it a lot. It's also the only free player I have tried that sorts of the bottom bar like the stock player does.

on my Asus Memo Pad HD 7 not work hardware decoding... it's only me?

parsifal968 said:
on my Asus Memo Pad HD 7 not work hardware decoding... it's only me?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not many MeMO pad users in this forum, its for the TF101.
Do you have the proper codec installed for your processor?

[Q] Hardware / Software Video Decoding: Howto 480p H.264/AVC1?

WikiPedia said:
Media support
Android supports the following audio/video/still media formats: WebM, H.263, H.264 (in 3GP or MP4 container), MPEG-4 SP, AMR, AMR-WB (in 3GP container), AAC, HE-AAC (in MP4 or 3GP container), MP3, MIDI, Ogg Vorbis, FLAC, WAV, JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am confused, I really thought the ZTE Blade should be capable of 480p playback, but I could not make it work so far.
Currently I am using a CM7.2-RC0 KANG with overclocking to 710MHz on smartassV2 governor and I have installed MoboPlayer + MoboPlayer Codec for ARM V6VFP.
I have tried two video files with the following specifications:
Code:
container format: matroska (mkv)
video: 852 x 480 / H264 / 24 fps
audio: MPEG-4 AAC / Stereo / 48000 Hz
Both files are unplayable, video lags & looks like slow motion, audio completely out of sync.
MoboPlayer insisted on the Codec pack on first start, and can only playback such files in software decoding mode.
So my questions are:
Is the ZTE Blade capable of hardware video decoding or not?
Is there any video player capable of correct playback of such 480p H264 content?

Try to reencode the video files using this guide: Link

Thanks for the info, will try handbrake now.
But nevertheless, maybe someone can explain what the problem could be, because I really was not expecting a 480p / H264 file causing any trouble.

From Qualcomm website:
MSM7227 can hardware accelerate video playback on files which are made with MPEG-4 Simple Profile Up to [email protected] (800x480), 2Mbps

agpoli said:
From Qualcomm website:
MSM7227 can hardware accelerate video playback on files which are made with MPEG-4 Simple Profile Up to [email protected] (800x480), 2Mbps
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, so a re-encode is inevitable, but what to take care of in HandBrake that the resulting file can be played with hardware acceleration?
I am actually re-encoding my two 480p / H264 sample files with the following settings:
Picture Settings
Auto Crop: Yes
Storage width: 800 height: 448
Optimal for source: Off
Anamorphic: Off
Alignment: 16
Keep Aspect: Yes
Filters: All off
Destination
Format: MP4
Web optimized: Yes
Video Encode: H.264 (x264)
Framerate: Same as source
Variable Framerate: Yes
Bitrate (kbps): 1500
2-Pass Encoding: Yes
Audio: AAC (faac) Bitrate=160 SampleRate=48 Mix=Stereo
CABAC Entropy Encoding: Off
So the mentioned Qualcomm limits are met, altough I don't know what "MPEG-4 Simple Profile" exactly means. The resulting files will have [email protected] <= 1.5Mbps.
BTW It's taking a very long time to re-encode on my dual-core hyperthreading Atom 330 desktop (running Ubuntu 10.04 LTS), which means I better get it right without much experimenting.
How exactly can I check if hardware acceleration is actually used for playback?

You don't need to reencode that video you just need to remux it, it is an mkv container which android won't play. Download YAMB (Yet Another Mp4box GUI) and remux it which will take a couple of minutes.
edit: AFAIK the stock video doesn't have s/w decoding the resulting MP4 should play in that.

youngsta2010 said:
You don't need to reencode that video you just need to remux it, it is an mkv container which android won't play. Download YAMB (Yet Another Mp4box GUI) and remux it which will take a couple of minutes.
edit: AFAIK the stock video doesn't have s/w decoding the resulting MP4 should play in that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I could not find something like YAMB for Ubuntu, so I tried with Avidemux, but the resulting .mp4 files could not be played with the stock video player, and resulted in the same problems as the original 480p / H264 files in matroska containers (lagging video looking like slow motion with audio completely out of sync). So that didn't change anything, which does not surprise me, since MoboPlayer can open .mkv files, so the container format can not make any difference.
Unfortunately the re-encoded .m4v video didn't play in the stock video player, and caused about the same lag in MoboPlayer, although it seems slightly better, but still unwatchable.
It seems I am still overlooking something, because the resulting file of the re-encoding meets the mentioned Qualcomm specifications.
So what has to be done, to be able to playback a 800x448 H264 video with 24 fps and MPEG-4 AAC stereo audio with 48000 Hz / 160 kbps?
I really don't want to scale the video down, I want to have the maximum possible with the physical screen resultion, which is 800x448 by keeping the aspect ratio.

I think your problem is the aspect ratio, I think it needs to be less than 800 width. So if you reencode, make the width 800 and keep aspect ratio that should then be fine. I just saw mkv and thought, there's ya problem! Every video i've played that's been over 800 width has been as you describe, like it's playing in slow motion.
edit: Did you reencode to 800 x 448? If so then it should play fine.

That's the catch, the video is now a .M4V file re-encoded to 800x448 with variable bitrate less than 1.5Mbps at 24 fps and MPEG-4 AAC stereo audio with 48000 Hz 160 kbps, so it complies to the Qualcomm specifications for hardware accelerated playback, but it just does not work!
800x448 is the correct aspect ratio, scaled down from the original 852x480.
I have no clue what else to try, and what the problem could be, so my guess is that there has to be a catch with hardware acceleration: MoboPlayer insists on software decoding, and the stock video player doesn't play those files at all.
Can anybody here report successful video hardware acceleration?

I've played MP4's on the stock video player so I know it works. Can you use mediainfo and post the readout from that?
http://mediainfo.sourceforge.net/en/Download/Ubuntu

Ok, here is the output of MediaInfo:
Code:
General
Format : MPEG-4
Format profile : Base Media / Version 2
Codec ID : mp42
File size : 256 MiB
Duration : 21mn 28s
Overall bit rate mode : Variable
Overall bit rate : 1 665 Kbps
Encoded date : UTC 2012-03-04 13:38:18
Tagged date : UTC 2012-03-04 14:20:24
Writing application : HandBrake 0.9.6 2012030200
Video
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : [email protected]
Format settings, CABAC : No
Format settings, ReFrames : 4 frames
Codec ID : avc1
Codec ID/Info : Advanced Video Coding
Duration : 21mn 28s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 1 500 Kbps
Width : 800 pixels
Height : 448 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16:9
Frame rate mode : Variable
Frame rate : 23.976 fps
Minimum frame rate : 23.419 fps
Maximum frame rate : 24.390 fps
Color space : YUV
Chroma subsampling : 4:2:0
Bit depth : 8 bits
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.175
Stream size : 230 MiB (90%)
Writing library : x264 core 120
Encoding settings : cabac=0 / ref=3 / deblock=1:0:0 / analyse=0x3:0x113 / me=hex / subme=7 / psy=1 / psy_rd=1,00:0,00 / mixed_ref=1 / me_range=16 / chroma_me=1 / trellis=1 / 8x8dct=1 / cqm=0 / deadzone=21,11 / fast_pskip=1 / chroma_qp_offset=-2 / threads=6 / sliced_threads=0 / nr=0 / decimate=1 / interlaced=0 / bluray_compat=0 / constrained_intra=0 / bframes=3 / b_pyramid=2 / b_adapt=2 / b_bias=0 / direct=1 / weightb=1 / open_gop=0 / weightp=2 / keyint=240 / keyint_min=24 / scenecut=40 / intra_refresh=0 / rc_lookahead=50 / rc=2pass / mbtree=1 / bitrate=1500 / ratetol=1,0 / qcomp=0,60 / qpmin=3 / qpmax=69 / qpstep=4 / cplxblur=20,0 / qblur=0,5 / ip_ratio=1,40 / aq=1:1,00
Encoded date : UTC 2012-03-04 13:38:18
Tagged date : UTC 2012-03-04 14:20:24
Color primaries : BT.601-6 525, BT.1358 525, BT.1700 NTSC, SMPTE 170M
Transfer characteristics : BT.709-5, BT.1361
Matrix coefficients : BT.601-6 525, BT.1358 525, BT.1700 NTSC, SMPTE 170M
Audio
ID : 2
Format : AAC
Format/Info : Advanced Audio Codec
Format profile : LC
Codec ID : 40
Duration : 21mn 28s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 160 Kbps
Maximum bit rate : 293 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Channel positions : Front: L R
Sampling rate : 48.0 KHz
Compression mode : Lossy
Stream size : 24.6 MiB (10%)
Language : English
Encoded date : UTC 2012-03-04 13:38:18
Tagged date : UTC 2012-03-04 14:20:24

It needs to be MPEG-4 Simple Profile, you're using 'high'. Try using the automatic settings in avidemux for apple ipod, just change the size (if you can, it's playing up for me).

Yeah i was going to say it's because of the high profile, you beat me to it There should be an option in handbrake to use iPhone/iPod profile I've never used it myself or avidemux. I know you can set the profile in MeGUI but it's a little complicated.

Ok, one step closer, but how to set "MPEG-4 Simple Profile" in HandBrake? There seems to be no one-click option, but there is an Advanced Tab, which I just made a screenshot of.
I hope to get it done in HandBrake, because I am not comfortable with Avidemux, which always gives some strange error messages when processing Matroska containers.

I've just installed Handbrake on windows tho so it's probably different. On the right hand side there is a presets window is that the same?

It should be the same on Windows & Linux. There is a preset window on the right, where I created my own for the ZTE Blade since non of the presets had the correct resolution settings.
My guess is, that those presets do not do anything different what one can configure by hand in the various tabs, so now I am puzzled because there is no MPEG4 profile option, but I think there has to be a way to set it.

I can't find anyway to change it to simple or baseline, do you have android high and mid presets? Try either of those, you can set the width and height on the picture tab.
edit: Ok go to the advanced tab, on the CLI at the bottom add this to the end.
:x264-profile=baseline
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
See if that sets it. I should think tho that using the android preset should work out fine.

Ok, I now have deleted my "ZTE Blade" preset, and created a new one based on "Android Mid". The settings in the Advanced Tab are different now, and I don't think the "x264-profile" option has to be set manually, because the used profile seems to be the result of the various settings in the Advanced Tab.
A new re-encode is already running, and I'll check with MediaInfo again, once it's finished.

This file plays fine in the stock video player, just so you know it works.
dl.dropbox.com/u/26323604/Box%20for%20Android%20Intro.mp4

Problem solved!
Here is the MediaInfo of the new re-encode based on the "Android Mid" preset:
Code:
General
Format : MPEG-4
Format profile : Base Media / Version 2
Codec ID : mp42
File size : 256 MiB
Duration : 21mn 28s
Overall bit rate mode : Variable
Overall bit rate : 1 664 Kbps
Encoded date : UTC 2012-03-05 20:28:55
Tagged date : UTC 2012-03-05 20:58:38
Writing application : HandBrake 0.9.6 2012030200
Video
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : [email protected]
Format settings, CABAC : No
Format settings, ReFrames : 2 frames
Codec ID : avc1
Codec ID/Info : Advanced Video Coding
Duration : 21mn 28s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 1 500 Kbps
Width : 800 pixels
Height : 448 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16:9
Frame rate mode : Variable
Frame rate : 23.976 fps
Minimum frame rate : 23.810 fps
Maximum frame rate : 24.390 fps
Color space : YUV
Chroma subsampling : 4:2:0
Bit depth : 8 bits
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.175
Stream size : 230 MiB (90%)
Writing library : x264 core 120
Encoding settings : cabac=0 / ref=2 / deblock=1:0:0 / analyse=0x1:0x111 / me=umh / subme=6 / psy=1 / psy_rd=1,00:0,00 / mixed_ref=1 / me_range=16 / chroma_me=1 / trellis=0 / 8x8dct=0 / cqm=0 / deadzone=21,11 / fast_pskip=1 / chroma_qp_offset=-2 / threads=6 / sliced_threads=0 / nr=0 / decimate=1 / interlaced=0 / bluray_compat=0 / constrained_intra=0 / bframes=0 / weightp=0 / keyint=240 / keyint_min=24 / scenecut=40 / intra_refresh=0 / rc_lookahead=40 / rc=2pass / mbtree=1 / bitrate=1500 / ratetol=1,0 / qcomp=0,60 / qpmin=3 / qpmax=69 / qpstep=4 / cplxblur=20,0 / qblur=0,5 / ip_ratio=1,40 / aq=1:1,00
Encoded date : UTC 2012-03-05 20:28:56
Tagged date : UTC 2012-03-05 20:58:38
Color primaries : BT.601-6 525, BT.1358 525, BT.1700 NTSC, SMPTE 170M
Transfer characteristics : BT.709-5, BT.1361
Matrix coefficients : BT.601-6 525, BT.1358 525, BT.1700 NTSC, SMPTE 170M
Audio
ID : 2
Format : AAC
Format/Info : Advanced Audio Codec
Format profile : LC
Codec ID : 40
Duration : 21mn 28s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 160 Kbps
Maximum bit rate : 293 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Channel positions : Front: L R
Sampling rate : 48.0 KHz
Compression mode : Lossy
Stream size : 24.6 MiB (10%)
Language : English
Encoded date : UTC 2012-03-05 20:28:56
Tagged date : UTC 2012-03-05 20:58:38
It's playing in the Android stock video player and MoboPlayer confirms it's Hard-Decoding (can be checked by touching the screen during playback and then the three dots on the right side, then the media and playback info is shown).
So this is really cool, stunning picture quality with full resolution, completely smooth playback with no chopping, and audio/video perfectly in sync.