en•2 min read

Quick check for key specifications

Convert any video to H.264 Baseline Profile with Level 3.1 (maximum compatibility):

Usage

Viewing MP4 Details

Command Line (ffprobe)

bash

# Quick check for key specifications
ffprobe -v quiet -print_format json -show_format -show_streams input.mp4 | grep -E '"codec_name"|"width"|"height"|"profile"|"level"'

GUI Tools (Windows/Mac/Linux)

MediaInfo (Recommended)

Download: https://mediaarea.net/en/MediaInfo
Shows detailed codec, profile, level, resolution, bitrate information
Professional tool used by video engineers

VLC Media Player

Tools → Media Information (Ctrl+I) → Codec Details tab
Quick basic video information

HandBrake

Load video to see source details
Shows format, codec, resolution in the summary tab

Converting MP4

Basic Compatibility Conversion

Convert any video to H.264 Baseline Profile with Level 3.1 (maximum compatibility):

bash

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
  -c:v libx264 \
  -profile:v baseline \
  -level:v 3.1 \
  -c:a aac \
  -b:a 128k \
  output_compatible.mp4

Convert 4K to 1080p

bash

ffmpeg -i input_4k.mp4 \
  -vf scale=1920:1080 \
  -c:v libx264 \
  -profile:v baseline \
  -level:v 3.1 \
  -c:a aac \
  -b:a 128k \
  output_1080p.mp4

Convert H.265/HEVC to H.264

bash

ffmpeg -i input_h265.mp4 \
  -c:v libx264 \
  -profile:v baseline \
  -level:v 3.1 \
  -c:a aac \
  -b:a 128k \
  output_h264.mp4

Convert Vertical Video to Horizontal (with black padding)

bash

# Generic conversion - auto-calculates scaling and padding
ffmpeg -i vertical_input.mp4 \
  -vf "scale='if(gt(iw/ih,16/9),1920,-2)':'if(gt(iw/ih,16/9),-2,1080)',pad=1920:1080:(1920-iw)/2:(1080-ih)/2:black" \
  -c:v libx264 \
  -profile:v baseline \
  -level:v 3.1 \
  -c:a aac \
  -b:a 128k \
  output_horizontal.mp4

Common Parameters Explained

Parameter	Description	Example Values
`-c:v`	Video codec	`libx264`, `libx265`, `copy`
`-profile:v`	H.264 profile	`baseline`, `main`, `high`
`-level:v`	H.264 level	`3.1`, `4.0`, `5.1`
`-c:a`	Audio codec	`aac`, `mp3`, `copy`
`-b:a`	Audio bitrate	`128k`, `192k`, `256k`
`-vf`	Video filter	`scale=1920:1080`