Why am I not able to put videos onto my iPod Classic?

New Itunes targets/focuses on Iphones and Ipod touch more; try downloading an older version of Itunes.

Yes, iPod Classic does support several video standards in the .MP4 format.

But apparently, there are some specifics to keep in mind:

H.264 video, up to 1.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Low-Complexity version of the H.264 Baseline Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats;

H.264 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Baseline Profile up to Level 3.0 with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats;

MPEG-4 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Simple Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats

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I guess one question is: Once you’ve imported the movie into your iTunes Library, are you able to play it there?

(It’s not a guarantee… but a first step.)

@MrGeneVan, the latest version of iTunes perfectly supports the iPod Classic.

Believe it or not, Apple is actually able to craft their software such that it can uniquely identify the respective iPod model connected and optimize communication with it.

@robmandu: Yes. Once the videos are imported into the library, I am able to play them just as I am with videos purchased through iTunes.

In iTunes there should be an option to convert those videos to iPod format. It’s very picky about the specifics.

From the iPod User Guide:

To convert a video for use with iPod:
1 Select the video in the iTunes library.
2 Choose “Create iPod or iPhone version”. (exact wording depends on your version of iTunes—it might be under an “Advanced” submenu.)

Depending on the length and content of a video, converting it for use with iPod can take several minutes to several hours.

Note: When you convert a video for use with iPod, the original video remains in your iTunes library. If you still see a message saying a video can’t play on your iPod, you may wish to delete the original video from iTunes.

Thank you! The above answer from @robmandu worked like a charm (it was under the “Advanced” submenu). Thanks again, for all of the help!

Yikes… I spoke too soon. After creating an iPod/iPhone version… it creates a file (which is able to be uploaded to my iPod) that has audio, but no video aside from a white screen.

If you rip the video with Handbrake, use the “iPod low rez” setting, then it will put the vid in the correct format when it rips it and you don’t have to go through the convert option.
I find that takes forever, even with a MacBook with 4 gig & 2.4 GHz Intel.