If you’re a first-time PSP user, please bear in mind that you can’t just upload any video file into your device. PSP does not accept your usual MPEG, Real Media or even Divx or Xvid. If you try to upload video of such formats, it will not show under Video in the main menu of your PSP.

But that does mean you have to miss out on video clips or movies in the said formats. For PSP to play your video, it must be in the MP4 format. However, it doesn’t mean any MP4 file can be played back on PSP. The MP4 must be in a valid PSP format, which means the video file has to be encoded with special software meant for PSP playback.

How do you go about it? Well, worry not because there’s an excellent freeware tool called PSP Video 9. The freeware produces excellent PSP-compatible video because the software supports PSP’s latest firmware. Using PSP Video 9 you can rest assured that your videos will go into the Video Folder instead of some weird-sounding folders.

Anyway, let’s get down to work. This is what you’ll need to do to get started on the conversion and uploading process.

Step 1: Download and install PSP Video 9.

Step 2: If Microsoft CLR is not present in your system, PSP Video 9 will install it for you. This is important for PSP Video 9 to function. You must be connected to the Internet and be prepared to wait for a little while as the file size is around 23MB.

Step 3: Now connect your PSP to your PC using your USB cable. Next insert your Memory Stick into the reader slot. Make sure your memory stick is formatted before you move on to the next step.

Step 4: Launch PSP Video 9 and if everything goes well a PSP Found message pops up. From then on follow the onscreen instructions. Set up your video output directory.

Step 5: You are now ready to start encoding your video. On the left hand menu you will see the Convert, Copy and Setup buttons. Choose Convert.

Step 6: Choose the One-Click Transcode button and click on it. Browse to the appropriate directory to select your desired video file. If this is the first file you’re selecting, encoding starts at once. Otherwise, you file will be queued behind previously selected files.

Step 7: On completion of the conversion, click on the Copy button on the left menu. You will now be in the Copy mode screen. Select the video you have converted from the output directory. Then click on the Copy Video to PSP button. Assuming that you have sufficient space in your PSP, the copying process begins.

Step 8: Once done, navigate to the Video menu on your PSP and you are ready to play your favourite video.

If you would like to preview your converted clip before uploading to your PSP, you need a Quicktime player. You can download it for free.