Copy DVD To iPod Using Freeware
March 25th, 2007You finally caved and got the first season of 24 or Lost on DVD. Now you’re hooked and you would use every opportunity to watch it. Then you realize: “Hey, my iPod! It’s perfect for traveling and for the gym, but how can I copy my DVDs to my iPod?!� . So you do some Googling, but you discover that there are hundreds of solutions out there and, worse, that copying DVDs has become a money making scheme! Besides that, nobody tells you that there are two big technical problems with copying or converting DVDs:
1) Most commercial DVDs are encrypted for copy protection;
2) There are many encoding variables (bitrates, aspect ratios etc.).
It isn’t publicized, but commercial DVDs are normally copy protected with encryption technology (including region codes) and most commercial DVD copy software does not allow users to copy protected DVDs. Without going into the legalities suggested in #1 above or the complexities suggested in #2 above, here is a free solution to copy DVD to iPod. It’s really very easy, but the first time will take a few minutes longer.
Step 1: Decrypt DVD using DVD43
1) Download and install DVD43. AnyDVD (http://www.slysoft.com/en/anydvd.html) is another option, but it’s not free.
2) After downloading and installing DVD43 you will need to reboot your computer. DVD43 runs as a service so you do not need to do anything to enable the decryption besides watching the yellow smiley face … turn into a little devil … and then turn to a green smiley face when you insert the DVD you want to copy.
Step 2: Rip DVD to iPod mp4 format using Handbrake
1) Download and install Handbrake (Windows GUI version)
2) In the Source section:
* Click on Browse and select the TS_VIDEO folder in your DVD drive.
* Select the Read Video button.
* Select OK.
* Select the View Data button. This will return all the titles on the DVD.
* Select the title you want to copy and click the Select Title button.
* Optional: Select DVD Chapters.
Take note of the Aspect Ratio value shown at the bottom of the Source section. Example: 1.78
3) In the Destination section:
* Click on Destination and browse to the folder where you want to save the movie. Enter a File name and select mp4 as the Save movie type.
* For Encoder, select .H.264 (iPod)
* For Audio Encoder, select AAC.
* For Height/Width, select the option that matched the aspect ratio that you noted in Step 1:
- For 1.33:1: 320 x 240
- For 1.78:1: 368 x 208
- For 2.35:1: 384 x 160
4) In the bottom section:
* Leave Picture Settings, Audio Settings, H.264 and Query Editor as is.
* Video Settings: Enter 768 into the Video BitRate text box and leave everything else default.
* Optional: Set number of processors under Advanced Settings.
* Finally, hit the Encode Video button at the bottom.
* Hit OK on the start encoding message. A command line window will open the ripping process will start.
Step 3: Copy your mp4(s) to your iPod
Use iTunes to copy your mp4(s) to your iPod in the usual way.
Additional information
Handbrake is really a CLI (command line) tool and the GUI that is used in this post, really just builds and executes the command line instruction. In the GUI you can see the resulting command line instruction by selecting the “Query Editor” tab and hitting Generate Query Now. Now, you can go further and use this “query” to script batch copying by copying it into a .bat file (note that you will need to replace hbtest.exe in the query with hbcli.exe for it to work).
There are other free solutions like the ones below, but they seem to me to be more cumbersome. For example DVD Decryptor is a powerful DVD decryption program, but DVD43 does it on the fly. Anyway, here are other solutions you could try:
* Lifehacker.com – Alpha Geek: Copy DVDs to your iPod [using DVD Decryptor and Videora iPod Converter]
* All Things Marked – HOWTO: Convert movies to iPod format [for free] [using 3GP Converter]
April 18th, 2007 at 7:34 pm
Hi Mr Epipe,
Very cool stuff you have here – I am trying out the dvd to ipod stuff.
thanks
Kevin
May 13th, 2007 at 3:47 am
very helpful for complete beginner.
I have movie on movie section of itunes but it won’t sync with ipod
why????
June 13th, 2007 at 3:06 am
IMO, Why not just pay around $29 to get a shareware which is capable of converting DVD movies into iPod mp4 in just one step?! It’s all your choice: get iPod mp4 for free in two steps; or pay for a fast ipod converter, and create the iPod mp4 in just one step.
June 13th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
udigis, I agree with you in concept, however, in my experience not all commercial software actually works. Typically they do not have decryption built in and you end up paying $29 plus needing to install decryption software. Also, although it’s described as a 2 step process above it is only the first time and after that it’s a one step.
July 28th, 2007 at 2:46 am
I have some queries on the setting as below:-
What is 1.33:1, 1.78:1, 2.35:1?
How can I optimiae the display of the iPod?
Why input 768? What 768 means?
How can I add sub-title?
Please help.
August 5th, 2007 at 12:47 am
udigis said….”IMO, Why not just pay around $29 to get a shareware which is capable of converting DVD movies into iPod mp4 in just one step?! It’s all your choice: get iPod mp4 for free in two steps; or pay for a fast ipod converter, and create the iPod mp4 in just one step.”
because typing ./myhandbrake.sh is easier and cheaper than $hareware. Here’s a nickel, get yourself a better OS.
December 4th, 2007 at 7:32 pm
Thanks Da Vinci, I purchased software to copy DVDs to iPods (Avex DVD to iPod Converter, based on a Consumer Reports article) only to find out that it didn’t work on most DVDs. It took me a while to figure out that it’s the encryption. DVD43 is great
So I agree with Bill Roy and Da Vinci, using DVD43 & Handbrake may sound like two steps vs one, but 1) at least IT WORKS and 2) you don’t feel ripped of for paying for something!
January 4th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Very good and works i have spent a long time looking for something good.
January 23rd, 2008 at 9:09 am
I downloaded (DVD43 and) Handbreak Windows GUI but in use it doesn’t offer me the chance to enter the aspect ratio (the boxes are there but I can’t type into them, it doesn’t have a video bitrate box (has an avg bitrate box instead which I was also unable to type into – default value was 1500) and in several other respects doesn’t look like the screenshots in your instructions. I succeeded desipite these difficulties in creating a movie that I can view on my PC but it won’t sync with my iPod nano – says it isn’t compatible.
Help!
January 23rd, 2008 at 11:14 am
Jackie, the Handbrake GUI has been updated since I posted this solution. I used Version 0.8 Build 2.1. You can try finding that version somewhere. When I get time I hope to create an updated post using a current version of Handbrake.
April 9th, 2008 at 8:19 am
This is only DVD to iPod program that I have tried which I have found to work each and every time.
Thank you
April 17th, 2008 at 8:49 am
Dude. This is the best thing ever.
I’ve been trying to find a windows tutorial for HandBrake but all I’ve been able to find is Mac, Mac, Mac!!!
Thanks!!!
(and for all the skeptics, It really does work!)
August 10th, 2008 at 8:29 pm
to udugis, who said:
why should you have to pay for more stuff when you already payed for the dvd?
November 22nd, 2008 at 11:41 pm
This worked perfectly other than (as noted) there is now a newer version of Handbrake. I would recommend this to *anyone* – it is very simple to use.
December 22nd, 2008 at 9:55 pm
For iPod users, Tipard iPod Converter Suite is a requisite iPod converter to rip DVD and any video to iPod MP4 video format and MP3, M4A, AAC audio format. It can also backup the files on iPod to computer. This iPod Converter Suite is discount software for the coming Christmas. It is actually the combination of Tipard DVD to iPod Converter, Tipard iPod Video Converter and Tipard iPod to PC Transfer.
January 11th, 2009 at 12:23 am
Is the Windows/System/cmd window with the percentage that is slowly going up the encryption-thinggy? Because right now I can’t view the DVD at all. >.< I also can’t get iTunes to open the file that I saved. I’m quite confused right now.
January 13th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
Yes, the WINDOWS\system\CMD window is the “encryption-thingy”. It shows how much of the encryption has been done and how much is left in percentages.
January 13th, 2009 at 7:04 pm
By the way, this is pretty much awesome. I tried ripping the DVD without DVD43, but it said it was gonna take about 22 hours. Then, I followed this tutorial and it took less than one hour.
May 17th, 2009 at 8:36 pm
[...] either copy protected or it failed without clear reason. In a previous post I have described how to copy a DVD to an iPod, but here’s a way to simply backup your DVDs to DVDs. There are two main problems with [...]
October 10th, 2009 at 4:51 pm
IMO, Why not just pay around $29 to get a shareware which is capable of converting DVD movies into iPod mp4 in just one step?! It’s all your choice: get iPod mp4 for free in two steps; or pay for a fast ipod converter, and create the iPod mp4 in just one step.
I did pay for a commercial copy to iPod program ($40) only to find out that it honors the copy protect codes. What good is a copy program that will not copy?
December 8th, 2009 at 2:55 am
here is a step on how copy dvd to ipod
December 13th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
I’ve just started using this in total frustration at trying to get video’s onto my daughter’s ipod. It’s giving me an ETA of 5+ hours in the cmd window! – what am I doing wrong?
December 14th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
Hey, I just thought I would let you know your template doesn’t display correctly in Amaya. Cool site tho!
January 25th, 2010 at 5:47 pm
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January 26th, 2010 at 10:27 am
Thanks for the guide. QUite a few of my precious dvd are getting scratched, so time to make some backups!
February 25th, 2010 at 11:58 am
I love iPhone!
March 11th, 2010 at 4:04 am
Between me and my husband we’ve seen a lot of good movies at the theater but the releases this year have been the best for quite a few years. I think the technology is coming on leaps and bounds. Lets hope it continues.