Nice comparison, and well-done presentation.

Doom9 and other shootouts have consistently rated x264 as first or tied for first. Their tests are mostly done with cinematic content. With other content, the winner can vary- I've seen WMV or XVID look the best in some comparisons. But x264 is never far behind.

Shootouts usually throw out Apple's H.264 codec in the first round, but in my tests Apple's codec has won when dealing with cartoonlike content with large areas of solid color.

I believe the best way to deliver HD video over the net is via HD video podcast. This allows a lot better viewer experience with smooth playback and no buffering (because the video is local). Also offline viewing.

Josh,

For someone editing in Final Cut, how would you suggest I render x264 clips for web viewing? I'm a Sony Vegas guy that is slowly moving into FC and I don't know all of the applications I should be using.

Thanks,

Chad