How to Convert AVI to DVD: A Quick Look at the Facts

This post is a companion to my earlier post on How to Copy DVDs, which explored how to burn DVD movies with freeware and open source software.

When I examined the traffic logs, I realized that quite a few of you are looking to convert your AVI files to something that can be burned to a DVD. I assume the reason is because you are using a digital video camera of some sort, and when you transfer the video to your PC, you have no idea what to do with it from there.

There are several options available to convert AVI files to DVD format, and which one you choose will likely depend on your tolerance for bugs and errors, and your knowledge of topics like conversion and burning. I’ll cover each briefly below.

Convert and Edit AVI Files to Burn to a DVD

 If you’re copying files from a digital video camera to your PC, you will probably also want to edit them, unless you’re looking for a strict 1-to-1 copy of what’s on film. To do this you’ll need more than just the converter — you’ll also need a video studio. 

Video studios (or video studios that work) won’t be found for free, and they’ll range in price from anywhere in the neighborhood of $50 up to around $500. I use Pinnacle Studio for converting and editing my digital video, but that is one bloated piece of software! If I recall correctly, it loaded on multiple software discs, and requires a ton of horsepower to operate, but it does just about everything you can think of and is a really mature piece of software. 

A bit cheaper than that is the Movavi video studio, which is packed with features for about as cheap as this kind of software gets. You can convert AVI files to DVD and just about any other format — so if you want to move a video to your iPod, PSP, Zune, PDA, cell phone, etc. you can do it. You can also live record narrated screencasts, like you can in Camtasia. And then you have all of the typical editing features like transitions, joins and splits, burning capabilities, etc.

This installs and uninstalls much more cleanly than Pinnacle, and they have a fully functional trial available, so you can give it a shot to see if you like it. You can download the free trial here — it’s a secure download from Digital River, who also handles downloads for companies like Norton.

Convert Multiple File Types to Multiple File Types

If you want to be able to convert files between different file types, you had better be prepared for some headaches. The software I previously used was called Super, and is a free download available here. Super is infamously error prone, and it frequently locks up, crashes, and doesn’t convert for reasons that are largely unknown to me! It also requires some technical knowledge or experimentation as you select different codecs to work with. But it does work at least occasionally.

Once you convert the files with Super, you’ll need a separate program to actually burn those files to DVD. That is, it handles conversions only, not getting files onto your PC or getting them onto disc.

Simple AVI to DVD Conversions

If you just want to do a straight conversion from AVI to DVD, a good piece of software for that task is Cucusoft AVI to DVD. It will handle the conversion and the burning to disc. There’s nothing fancy about Cucusoft, but it gets the job done, is very easy to use, and runs without error. It is also a clean install and uninstall and like Movavi, a free trial from Digital River is available. You can download the free trial here.

When choosing your software, just keep in mind that nothing works all of the time for everyone, and everyone has different needs. Just keep your technical ability, and your willingness to experiment and encounter errors in mind as you choose the right software for you.

Also watch the PC requirements for each piece of software. Everything listed here will run on Windows machines, Windows 98, 2000, XP, and Vista, provided you have sufficient RAM. I would consider 256 MB of RAM sufficient for the basic converters, at least 512 MB for Movavi, and at least 1 GB for Pinnacle. I have a dual-core processor and 4 GB of RAM and Pinnacle is still slow as molasses for me!

How to Copy DVDs Using Freeware DVD Copy Programs

UPDATE March 6, 2009: See software update note at the bottom of this post.

 

 

Someone asked me about making DVD backups the other day, so I thought I’d share how to go about this here. Actually, they asked me how to burn DVD movies, but “making backups” just sounds better.  You might also be interested in the companion post How to Convert AVI to DVD.

The biggest hurdles to overcome when making backups of commercial DVD’s are the file size when copied, the encryption on the disc, and the legality of doing so. So the first thing you’ll need is a piece of DVD decryption software.

I’m not going to get into the legal implications of this here, except to say that copying commercial discs is not allowed, and it’s ridiculous that I can’t copy DVD’s I own as backups. For example, if I were the copying sort, making backups of my son’s DVD’s would be a great application of this sort of thing. They could theoretically get all scratched and gummed up because his grubby little two-year old paws would eventually end up all over them. In a situation like that, I’d much rather use a throwaway DVD-R. That could hypothetically save me considerable expense, and after all, I do own these discs (in this purely hypothetical example).

My father-in-law, who is not a U.S. resident, uses Slysoft AnyDVD for his backups. He says that the program is fast, but the backups tend to be of poor quality, presumably because of the file size issue. If I were to compare one of my hypothetical backups with his backups, I bet it would be of much higher quality, because the software that I would choose if I were the backing up sort would handle compression.

So if I were to choose ripping software, I would choose something like the freeware DVD Shrink, current version 3.2.0.15, which is the first half of the freeware DVD copy combo. DVD Shrink is able to remove encryption, and then compress the file to disc so that it can subsequently be burned onto a single DVD-R. It also has pretty good reauthoring features, so I could choose to leave off the foreign language track or bonus features if I were so inclined.

DVD Shrink’s official web site is here, but software can’t be downloaded from it. Rather, there is a forum that links to the various download locations. If I were to download DVD Shrink, I would make sure that I downloaded it from one of the locations referenced in that forum, and nowhere else. If I were to do it, of course.

A good quick start tutorial can be found, and more in-depth task-based tutorials are available.

Once this hypothetical file were on my PC, I would then go about burning it to a DVD. A very capable program that could be used to burn these types of files is the free ImgBurn software, luckily available for download directly from their site. The current version is 2.4.0. This is the second half of the freeware DVD copy combo.

If I were to go about making backup copies, these are the programs I would use. They are very capable and make high-quality backups. But due to the decryption, compression, and drive speeds, they would take some time to copy a full DVD, perhaps along the lines of 30 minutes to rip and 30 minutes to burn and verify. Or so I would reasonably expect.

In all seriousness, while I do think it’s ridiculous that I can’t backup movies I own for my own personal use, I am strongly opposed to intellectual property theft of any kind. I would never consider it, and I discourage everyone I know from doing it. Fair use on the other hand is. . .well, fair.

IMPORTANT UPDATE:

It looks like the open source DVD Shrink is no longer being updated, unfortunately. The outdated copy can still be downloaded, but probably not via the forum as before. Download at your own risk — now that there is no official download, the executable will be a target of malicious activity. If you’re familiar with security, trojans, spyware, and such, you can still find copies of the software; otherwise, it’s probably wisest to ignore it. Also, due to the length of time since the last DVD Shrink update, it has problems ripping many new DVD releases.

I have done a fair amount of research to find a newer, updated product that will rip and burn backups, and I found a winner. The process is much easier than what I outlined above, because it only takes one piece of software instead of two — essentially, it’s a DVD Copier, and it’s fuller featured than above. You can copy just about any DVD, re-author it, selectively remove menus or just copy the main feature, etc. You’ll want at least 512 MB of RAM to run it.

It’s not free at $35, but it costs much less than comparable software and has a good history of updates. I’ve been using it for about 45 days now with very good success. You can also download a trial just by mashing on this link or the image to the right. It’s the same product, just requires a license key if you want to use it past the trial period.

LEGO Digital Designer

Tell me LEGO doesn’t know their customers. LEGO’s Digitial Designer software allows you to build a 3D model of your dream creation, and then order the parts needed to make it a reality. Once built, submit your creation to their product gallery. If you’ve ever had a fantasy of creating an Oop!-like LEGO sculpture, this looks like the best way to do it.

I wonder how the revenues of the simple Lego starter kits compare to some of their advanced sets. I’ve always assumed that the sheer quantity of those starter sets are heavily favored in the revenue mix, even if their margins aren’t as high as some of the advanced sets. But LEGO most definitely does not ignore the loyal hobbyists.

This software just made it to the top of my spare time to-do list.

LEGO.com Factory and Digital Designer software