[chapindad]

I love the option to download movies into Klexi into Plex for offline viewing. It is so simple that I am surprised no one else has done it. I have a 64GB iPad so this feature is awesome. Before I would have to Handbrake my movies and then move them to iTunes and sync my device. Now I just queue it up on Plex and wait for the download. Brilliant!

Now for the problem: why is it so darn slow? Is it the transcoding on Plex? Allowing me to queue movies for an over the night download helps but it takes as long to download the movie as it is to watch it....

[pumpkin]

chapindad, on 20 September 2010 - 01:57 PM, said:

I love the option to download movies into Klexi into Plex for offline viewing. It is so simple that I am surprised no one else has done it. I have a 64GB iPad so this feature is awesome. Before I would have to Handbrake my movies and then move them to iTunes and sync my device. Now I just queue it up on Plex and wait for the download. Brilliant!

Now for the problem: why is it so darn slow? Is it the transcoding on Plex? Allowing me to queue movies for an over the night download helps but it takes as long to download the movie as it is to watch it....

Yup - it's slow because of the transcoding that needs to take place. My MacMini does it at about a 1:1 ratio, which means a 2 1/2 hour movie will take 2 1/2 hours to download. I'm not sure if more powerful computers transcode faster, but I'm sure they do.

All in all, it's the same time you'd spend handbraking the file, just happens "live" and is downloaded to your iOS device.

[Otto-Mate]

What's the possibility of Klexi playing other codec's in the future, like VLC on the iPad? That would allow you to just copy the files across rather than have to re-encode too.

Thanks

M.

[quiqueck]

Otto-Mate, on 21 September 2010 - 05:52 PM, said:

What's the possibility of Klexi playing other codec's in the future, like VLC on the iPad? That would allow you to just copy the files across rather than have to re-encode too.

Thanks

M.

That depends on the licensing terms of VLC. It is not as easy to open source parts of an iPhone app as it is with desktop applications. But it is definitely an option!

[ndaversa]

I just queued up some downloads and wanted to understand what behaviour to expect. Since iOS limits background processes to 10mins, how do I ensure Klexi is able to get all my queued videos to the phone, in say an overnight situation?

Here are the three use cases I can consider, feedback on Klexi's behaviour for each one would be fantastic.

1. I just leave the app open and let the system lock at the specified interval, does Klexi stay active in this case?

2. What if Klexi is open and i hit the lock switch, will Klexi continue to transfer the videos over after 10 mins?

3. Finally what if I background Klexi by hitting the home button and then later on go back to it, will my videos be there?

Thanks for any info you can provide. Love the app.

Cheers
ND

[niltz]

ndaversa, on 29 September 2010 - 01:40 AM, said:

I just queued up some downloads and wanted to understand what behaviour to expect. Since iOS limits background processes to 10mins, how do I ensure Klexi is able to get all my queued videos to the phone, in say an overnight situation?

Here are the three use cases I can consider, feedback on Klexi's behaviour for each one would be fantastic.

1. I just leave the app open and let the system lock at the specified interval, does Klexi stay active in this case?

2. What if Klexi is open and i hit the lock switch, will Klexi continue to transfer the videos over after 10 mins?

3. Finally what if I background Klexi by hitting the home button and then later on go back to it, will my videos be there?

Thanks for any info you can provide. Love the app.

Cheers
ND

I believe that in cases 1 and 2 it will continue to download as Klexi is still running. However, if you background the app then it will probably stop since it wouldn't be allowed to do anything in the background after the 10 minutes.

I don't know how this feature is implemented, or what the PLEX api looks like, but what I suspect is actually happening is that Klexi is just streaming the video from PLEX for regular play purposes, but instead of playing it, it is saving it for later play. This is why I think it takes 2 hours to download a 2 hour movie (it is actually just playing it normally and then storing it). Using Handbreak, I am able to transcode a 2 hour movie in less time on my mac mini.

So, if you background the app then the stream will stop and no more saving will take place.

[ndaversa]

niltz, on 29 September 2010 - 07:15 PM, said:

I believe that in cases 1 and 2 it will continue to download as KLEXi is still running. However, if you background the app then it will probably stop since it wouldn't be allowed to do anything in the background after the 10 minutes.

I don't know how this feature is implemented, or what the PLEX api looks like, but what I suspect is actually happening is that KLEXi is just streaming the video from PLEX for regular play purposes, but instead of playing it, it is saving it for later play. This is why I think it takes 2 hours to download a 2 hour movie (it is actually just playing it normally and then storing it). Using Handbreak, I am able to transcode a 2 hour movie in less time on my mac mini.

So, if you background the app then the stream will stop and no more saving will take place.

I have similar suspicions about the 1:1. Hopefully the Plex guys can open up an API for these kind of purposes, although props to KLEXi for thinking of it as a solution. Having videos for offline is a great feature.