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I recorded some video with a Sony Xperia phone.
All of the files were recorded in MP4 format. I was able to watch all of them on the phone after they were recorded without any problem.
I exported the files to my Windows 10 PC. Some of the files work great in Adobe Premiere Elements (I can see the video and hear sound).
Others do not work at all. I am getting an error that the file is not supported or that there is an issue with the codec.
When I try to open the file with the Windows Media Player, I only get a black screen with no sound.
I have tried the Handbrake program, and it cannot open the files, either.
I have tried changing the extension to mkv, mpg, mov and wav. None of these work allow me to open the files in Premiere.
I have also downloaded the newest Quicktime. Unfortunately, this will not let me open the files.
Help will be greatly appreciated with this.
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Have you installed Quicktime, per the program's system requirements? Although you can disable QuicktimePlayer.exe by changing its suffix, Premiere Elements 15 needs the components in Quicktime 7 to work with many codecs.
Changing the extension of your MP4 won't change what's going on with your MP4. It's quite likely your phone is recording MP4s with a variable frame rate, which can cause a number of these issues.
Open one of your MP4s in the free download MediaInfo. In MediaInfo, set View to Text and then copy and paste the report it generates to this forum. Once we see what this video file is made of, we'll be better able to address your issue.
But, meantime, install Quicktime's components, per the program's system requirements!
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Steve:
Thank you for your response.
Yes, I have Quicktime installed on my computer.
I installed Mediainfo on my pc now.
Here is the Mediainfo text from an mp4 that I cannot open:
General
Count : 329
Count of stream of this kind : 1
Kind of stream : General
Kind of stream : General
Stream identifier : 0
Inform : MPEG-4 (3GPP Media Release 4): 208 MiB
Complete name : C:\Users\me\Desktop\MOV_0034.mp4
Folder name : C:\Users\me\Desktop\
File name : MOV_0034
File extension : mp4
Format : MPEG-4
Format : MPEG-4
Format/Extensions usually used : mov mp4 m4v m4a m4b m4p 3ga 3gpa 3gpp 3gp 3gpp2 3g2 k3g jpm jpx mqv ismv isma ismt f4a f4b f4v
Commercial name : MPEG-4
Format profile : 3GPP Media Release 4
Internet media type : video/mp4
Codec ID : 3gp4
Codec ID : 3gp4 (isom/3gp4)
Codec ID/Url : http://www.3gpp.org/
CodecID_Compatible : isom/3gp4
Codec : MPEG-4
Codec : MPEG-4
Codec/Extensions usually used : mov mp4 m4v m4a m4b m4p 3ga 3gpa 3gpp 3gp 3gpp2 3g2 k3g jpm jpx mqv ismv isma ismt f4a f4b f4v
File size : 218497024
File size : 208 MiB
File size : 208 MiB
File size : 208 MiB
File size : 208 MiB
File size : 208.4 MiB
Stream size : 218497024
Stream size : 208 MiB (100%)
Stream size : 208 MiB
Stream size : 208 MiB
Stream size : 208 MiB
Stream size : 208.4 MiB
Stream size : 208 MiB (100%)
Proportion of this stream : 1.00000
HeaderSize : 24
DataSize : 218497000
FooterSize : 0
IsStreamable : No
File creation date : UTC 2018-01-07 02:00:40.000
File creation date (local) : 2018-01-06 21:00:40.000
File last modification date : UTC 2018-01-07 02:00:40.000
File last modification date (local) : 2018-01-06 21:00:40.000
IsTruncated : Yes
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It appears these MP4s are using a non-standard codec -- namely the 3gp4 codec -- rather than the more standard H.264.
You can try converting the file(s) to more conventional MP4s using the free download Handbrake.
My tutorial shows you how to convert your videos to standard, editable MP4s.
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Trying to add to Steve's comments, I looked at the website for the codec. It suggests a forward looking "5G" replacement to the current "4G LTE" connection standards. It is not in universal use yet and seems to have something to do with establishing a new standard to improve compression so we can watch movies on our phones.
I also tried to look up the phone video setting choices. All I got was that there were several. Most equipment now have two commonly used choices. One for 4K at 30fps and one for HD 1920x1080 at 6fps. Are those on the phone?
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WHSprague, thanks for the reply.
Where is a trusted site that I can try this/these codecs?
I went under settings on my phone, and it says "video resolution" Full HD (30 fps)
I am using a Sony Xperia XA1 phone.
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mitchc97801661 wrote
I went under settings on my phone, and it says "video resolution" Full HD (30 fps)
What are the other choices on the phone. You are using one that is not working for editing.
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Here are the four options on the phone:
Full HD (30 fps)
HD
VGA
MMS
As far as I know, all the videos were shot on "full hd (30 fps)"
Some videos can open, but others cannot.
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How well does the HD setting work?
Without access to the phone or manual, I'm having trouble trying to help. It does not make sense that a Sony phone would use an odd codec.
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Steve, thanks for the reply.
As stated in my first post, I have Handbrake on my pc. When I try to import a file that I cannot open in Premiere Elements, it says:
"no valid source or titles found"
-not a valid video or in a format handbrake does not support
-source may be copy protected
When I open a video file that I know works, it gives me information that it is working on the file, by percent, etc.
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I've never encountered that, mitch!