Reduce the size of MP4

I had an mp4 file which was of size 132 MB. I wanted to reduce the size of the file so that I can share it over mail. I googled for the solution and came across various options like using ffmpeg or other tools. After trying with all the options what worked for me is conversion using avconv. Here is the exact command I used on a Ubuntu 14.04.

avconv -i input.mp4 -s 1280×960 -strict experimental output.mp4

I had to add the option “-strict experimental ” as the tool showed warning when used without it. You can play with different resolution for “-s” option. With resolution of 1280×960 the size of mp4 reduced to 25 MB. Lower resolution can give smaller size, however it will affect the video quality.

I haven’t explored other options. If your in a hurry then avconv can get our work done without needing to know about Complex details about video format.