Downloads

You know a freeware product is good if the salesperson at the Sony Store recommends you go home and download it, instead of buying Sony's commercial version. That's how I first found out about PSP Video 9, an alternative to Sony's own video file conversion utility. Sony sells their software $30 to hapless PC users who want to watch their own videos on the Playstation Portable's high-quality widescreen LCD display.

In the intervening months, PSP Video 9 went from an independently developed conversion tool to being acquired by Red Kawa, makers of the Videora video search and conversion tools. PSP Video 9 had always used some of Videora's conversion technology, but with the acquisition, PSP Video 9 went from a one-trick pony to a full-fledged conversion tool capable of rendering videos in various formats. Its current format lineup supports devices as diverse as the Xbox 360, the Nintendo Wii or DS, Apple's iPod, iPhone, and Apple TV, and Sony's other console, the PS3.

True to its word, though, PSP Video 9 is still the easiest tool to use to convert video files to your PSP. Not only does it automatically choose the best conversion method for your file (thanks to its Web-based VideoWizard feature), but it also creates a thumbnail screenshot, renames the file to the PSP's oddball naming conventions, and puts it right onto your Memory Stick for you. It also keeps a database of video files you've converted, so you can easily choose one or more of your previously-converted files and move them to the Memory Stick for repeat viewing. Viva la portable video!

--Andrew Brandt