The repertoire of available media on the internet is extremely vast, but it is by no means complete. Sure, most streaming services have the most popular releases out there, but anything more niche is difficult to track down. There are still hundreds of hours of movies and shows that exist solely in physical form. Although it is worth adding that the convenience of digital media still can’t be understated, nobody is going around carrying their DVDs anymore. Luckily, you aren’t out of luck if you’d like to take your DVDs and turn them into a digital format that can be played on any device you own.
If you’re wondering how to copy a DVD on Windows without pulling your hair out in stress, the Freemake Video Converter application is exactly what you need. Using the app is straightforward and intuitive; just a few button pushes later, you’ll have your favorite DVD converted into whatever format you please. The process is simple: after downloading the Freemake Video Converter, just pop the DVD into your disc drive and then select that drive as the source inside of the program. From there, it’s just a matter of selecting what file format you’d like the converter to create for you. Be sure to do your homework as to what files are compatible with what devices if you’d like to watch these videos on a smartphone or tablet. Another cool feature of this program is if you’d like to take the video file and burn it back onto a blank disk, the option is there as well.
Depending on what device you’d like to play your media on, you’ll have to pick the appropriate file type. MP4 can be played on Windows devices and some Android devices, but for mobile devices, you’re better off with .MOV for iOS and .3gp or specially coded MP4’s on Android. AVI files are compatible only on Windows PC.
The next step in digitizing your collection is figuring out how you’re going to organize and store everything. A good external hard drive is recommended here, so you don’t bloat your computer full of video files and for ultimate portability. This review covers a worthwhile option for those who need about 4TB of storage space. The benefits of an external hard drive are vast; you can organize your movies by file time and then by genre/style of media, so all of the different formats are easily accessible at any time.
Ten years ago, it was a huge pain to digitize your DVD collection; it required a lot of paid tools, technical know-how, and of course, a time commitment. Now we’re fortunate enough to have free tools on hand that can easily and quickly do everything necessary with just a few clicks. Just remember to make sure that you’re converting your DVDs into a format that works with your intended device, otherwise, you won’t be able to do much of anything with your newly digitized collection.
