I have .ts files in 1920x1080i that I would like to convert to 720p and have them smaller by that fact.
I used MPEG Stramclip but I ended with files of much bigger size.
I don't get it. The best quality I used probably added more pixels than what was on the file at first!

Ideally since I have a Panasonic 720p projector and I'm waiting for the aTV, I would like to have 720p h264 files completely readable, same quality and smaller than the originals. It should be possible but I don't how to do it.

I suppose when the aTV is out some programs will appear to do that automaticaly (like there is for the iPod) but in the (short) meantime, I would like to begin the process, that would be fine since it takes a lot of time (and also my 1TB movies disk is already FULL!)

I found the solution to my own question...

I'm doing tests with ffmegX. It's more easy to configure than MPEG Streamclip because it has a "bitrate calculator".

So I'm doing some conversions with the two apps at comparable rates and will compare the quality. I'll post my results here.

Thanks, Michel as I am looking to do the same thing when my Apple TV arrives. I haven't looked at ffmpeg.

-gb-

Thanks, Michel as I am looking to do the same thing when my Apple TV arrives. I haven't looked at ffmpeg.

-gb-

Finally (after having paid for ffmegX…) I opted for MPEG Streamclip.
It's doing the best conversion without any bugs.
ffmegX is very buggy and the results not always what you're waiting for.

With MPEG Streamclip you can convert to 24 fps and it works very well.

MPEG Streamclip is free too.

The only thing I use ffmegX for is determinate the best rate for a kind of file…