If you have a DVD movie collection, you may have thought about transferring them to your computer or portable device for convenient later viewing. After ripping the movie, you will need to convert it to be able to view it on other devices. That's what HandBrake will do for you. Use HandBrake to convert video files to formats supported by any device, and use this guide to learn how to use it.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Open a Source File
Step 1. Click on the Source button
You can find it in the upper left corner of the HandBrake window. In the menu that appears, select Open Folder or Open File.
- HandBrake can open unencrypted image (.iso), DVD and Blu-ray files, and virtually any video format.
- You cannot use HandBrake to copy protected DVD or Blu-ray. You must first use another program to rip the contents of the disk. HandBrake will convert the video files to a format that can be used by other devices.
Step 2. Select the chapters
If the source file is divided into chapters, you can choose which ones you want to convert.
If there are multiple camera angles, you can choose the ones that interest you
Step 3. Choose the destination file
Choose where to save the file after conversion is complete. Make sure you give it a name that is easy to remember.
Method 2 of 2: Converting the Video File
Step 1. Choose a preset (adjustment)
The easiest way to convert a video is to select the target device from the list in the right part of the window. These presets are used to ensure that the converted files are fully compatible with the selected device.
- MP4 is the most supported format and is therefore always selected by default in the Output Settings. If you plan to upload the video to YouTube or other streaming sites, check the “Web Optimized” box.
- If you need to convert a video to watch on a computer or upload to YouTube, select the Normal or High Profile presets.
Step 2. Watch a Preview
You can click the Preview button to watch a piece of the video you are converting to check its quality before embarking on a lengthy conversion process. Converting a video can take a long time, especially if you're converting high-quality videos. It may take a few moments to create the preview video.
Step 3. Adjust the settings
If you are not satisfied with the result, you can use the tabs below to adjust the settings. Each tab relates to a specific aspect of the video.
- Picture: Here you can change the resolution of the video and eliminate the black bars.
- Filters: These filters affect video playback. They can remove layers that make the video seem too artificial.
- Video: Here you can change the codec and various quality-related options, such as frame rate and video optimization. One of the most important settings in this section is the Quality section, where you can adjust the bit rate of the resulting file. High bit rate files have higher quality but weigh much more than lower bit rate files.
- Audio: Here you can adjust the settings of each audio track of the source video. You can remove tracks you don't care about (such as those related to other languages) or adjust the audio quality regardless of the video quality.
- Subtitles: Here you can add subtitle files to the video. Usually these files are found together with the original video file.
- Chapters: Here you can view the list of chapters of the video file (usually found in image files). You can also import custom channel files.
- Advanced. This tab is usually disabled and must be enabled by checking the relevant box in the Video tab. Here you can change many other settings related to the x264 codec.
- Changing the preset settings may make the video incompatible with the selected device, especially regarding the frame rate or image size.
Step 4. Add the project to the queue
If you need to convert multiple files, click the Add To Queue button after finishing the video setup to add it to the list of videos to convert.
You can click the Show Queue button to view the list of projects ready to be converted
Step 5. Start the conversion
Click the green Start button to start converting the video files in your queue. The conversion will take a lot of time and system resources. If you use your computer in the meantime, you will slow down the conversion process and run the risk of having errors in the final file.
Step 6. Test the converted file
Once the conversion is done, transfer the file to your device or open it on your computer. Make sure the quality is fine and there are no mistakes.
