My new dashcam shoots .ts files instead of .mpg and FCP can't import them.
I can view them on VLC or convert them with HandBrake but it is too convoluted.
Is there some way to get FCP to import them directly?
Mac mini, macOS 15.3
Shutter Encoder's Rewrap option allows you to convert TS container data based on H.264 or HEVC codecs into MOV or MP4 container data that can be imported into Final Cut Pro.
The time taken for the operation is close to the time it takes to copy the files.
Shutter Encoder Web Page
https://www.shutterencoder.com/
Fantastic!
Avidemux took only 5 seconds to convert a 1GB 4K file so I thought that was all I needed but Shutter Encoder did it even faster!
It was so quick I couldn't measure it.
Going back to my observation that 4K was not 4K, at least quality wise, this is quite a common thing in cheap stuff but also occurs in expensive tech.
I was watching review videos of dash cams where they were pitting several models from £32 up to £200 and the reviewers could detect very little difference in image quality. They thought they were all OK but I considered they were extremely poor optically though adequate for the job. It was obvious that though some may have had 4K sensors the image quality was nowhere near that of 1080p camera. I suspect the low quality lens was the limiting factor.
Spot which of these was 4K . . .
OOPs! My methodology was wrong.
I was viewing and taking screenshots of the images on a 1080p screen that of course did not do justice to 4K.
My previous comments were garbage as the 4K is slightly better but one has to ask whether the small improvement is worth the extra wear and tear on the camera and memory card.
Here are 100% blowups which need to be dragged to your desktop to see the difference clearly:-
You may be able to use ffmpeg to convert the files without reencoding.
I don't have a .ts file to test, but a command such as the following should work:
ffmpeg -i input.ts -c:v copy -c:a copy output.mp4
(input.ts would be the name of the file to convert, of course)
If this were to be used frequently, I'd create an Automator quick action, or perhaps even a Folder Action (so that you could simply drag the files to a designated folder, and that would trigger an automatic conversion).
As mentioned earlier I was able to convert the files with HandBrake.
I've never had any luck with ffmpeg and I would imagine the conversion would take as long as HB.
I remembered Avidemux and it appears to convert a one minute clip in a couple of seconds . . . which isn't bad and FCP likes the result.
I don't think it will be a regular thing!
Incidentally the dashcam like many others claims to be 4K and indeed produces massive 4K files but if you let it shoot 1080p the results are identical even when pixel-peeping.
I wasn't surprised.
Too big for my slow broadband.
Could you open one of these files with MediaInfo and post a screenshot?
Even better, could you share a sample file?
That’s basically the DVD transport stream format. Nothing FCP can do with it.
Import .ts files into Final Cut Pro?
