Xilisoft DVD to Video for Mac FAQ

General questions:

  • Q1: Some DVD cannot be recognized and loaded by your program automatically, how can I load them in this situation?

    A: In this situation, you need click the "Add" button in the program. And then in the following dialog-box, you should browse to the DVD drive of your Mac. Choose the Video_TS folder of your DVD disc and click "Choose" to get the DVD movie loaded into.
  • Q2: How can I select the wanted audio track and subtitle to output?

    A: After your DVD is loaded into the program, you can select the proper audio track option and subtitle option on the right panel of the main interface. All the audio and subtitle options that your DVD includes will be displayed in the corresponding lists so that you can select what you need before the conversion job.
  • Q3: Which output format is the best to get the smaller size with better quality if I want to backup my DVD on my Mac?

    A: If you only want to watch the output files on your Mac, you'd better select "DivX or AVI" as output format, which will provide better output video quality and smaller output size. And you can play the file directly by VLC Player, a free program.
  • Q4: Can I name the output files in my own way in your program before I start the conversion job?

    A: Of course you can. Before you click "Convert" button to start converting, you should check on the item, chapter or title, and then enter the name for your output file in the "Output Filename" box, the last option under "General" tab on the right part of the main interface.
  • Q5: I just want to get a small clip of my DVD. How can I do it?

    A: You can get this job done in two ways. After your DVD is loaded into the program, please check on the item that you want to convert. And then, please click the "Trim" button in the program. In the following dialog-box, video trim, you can preview the movie content you have selected. During the playback, you need click "Set Begin" to decide the starting point and "Set End" to decide the end point of the clip. After the setting is done, click "OK" to confirm. At last, click the "Convert" button to get the clip you want. Or you need go to the "Advanced" tab on the right part of the main interface and set "Start Time" and "Duration" there. For example, if the clip you want starts from the 3 minutes and 15 seconds of the whole item and it lasts about 5 minutes, you should set "Start Time" as 00:03:15, "Duration" as 00:05:00. You need enter the value directly into the box. In this way, you can also get the clip you want.
  • Q6: How can I find the output files after the conversion is done?

    A: At the bottom of the main interface, you should be able to find a button "Open". After the conversion job is completed, click "Open" and you can reach the output folder directly where you will find the output files.
  • Q7: Is it possible to improve the qualities in both video and audio?

    A: On the right panel of the main interface, under "General" tab, you can find the adjustment settings for video and audio qualities there. Or under the "Advanced" tab, you can improve the qualities by modifying Video Size and Bit Rate into larger numbers there. For some output formats, you can "Custom" some your own values there. But for some formats which are specifically designed for some devices, such as iPhone, Apple TV, iPod, etc., you'd better just use the value we have offered in the list. Or the output files will not be recognized by the devices.
  • Q8: Your program offers two profiles for iPod conversion,320x240 and 640x480. What is their difference?

    A: They are prepared for two kinds of iPod, G5 and G5.5. If your iPod belongs to G5, you can only use the profiles whose default Video Size is 320x240; if yours is of G5.5, the more advanced one, you can use all the iPod profiles we offered, regardless of their Video Size setting. Of course Video Size in 640x480 will provide much better quality when you watch the movie on your TV via iPod.
  • Q9: After I got iPod output files, how can I import them into iPhone?

    A: First of all, you must download the latest version of iTunes from www.apple.com. Next, you need load the MP4 movie into the "Library" of the iTunes. You will find it in the "Movie" list after that. Connect your iPhone with your PC via USB cable so that the device will be recognized by iTunes. Then, you can "SYNC" the movie into iPhone following its detail instruction. Actually, the way to import files into iPhone is same with the way to import files into iPod.
  • Q10: What are the differences in many similar profile options, such as several ones for iPod and several ones for iPhone?

    A: Actually, different profiles that we have offered represent different output qualities. For most of profiles, you can notice the different default settings on Video Size and Video Bit Rate. Generally, the higher values you set for those two items, the better qualities and the larger output file size you will get after the conversion. If you want to get the best quality and regardless of its file size, you'd better select the profile with the largest Video Size and Bit Rate.
  • Q11: After I got Apple TV output files, how can I import them into Apple TV?

    A: You can import the files into Apple TV in the same way to import files to iPod or iPhone that we have mentioned above in the Q11. Or you can connect your Apple TV to your Mac by wireless network. You can import the files by initiating iTunes via Apple TV directly.
  • Q12: My original DVD is 16:9. But after the conversion, I got a 4:3 file. Can I keep the original aspect?

    A: Before you start converting, please check on the item that you want to convert. And then under the "Advanced" tab on the right, you can set "Aspect". You can enter 16:9 or 4:3 directly into the corresponding place.
  • Q13: The output iPhone file is playable well on my Mac. But I get a black video content during the playback on the iPhone. Why?

    A: Please check the Video Bit Rate setting of your conversion job. The option can be found under the "Advanced" tab. According to our test, if you set a value larger than 2500 for this option, the output file will not be played properly on your iPhone.
  • Q14: Why I cannot sync the output files into iPhone through iTunes?

    A: You'd better check the output file by playing it in the QuickTime. If it can be played well in the QuickTime, it would be the problem caused by your output settings. Please check the Video and Audio Bit Rate settings before the conversion job. If you do not use the value that we have offered in Video Size and Bit Rate as we have mentioned in the Q9 above, iTunes will not accept the output files.
  • Q15: What is the best audio format that can be played in iPod or iPhone?

    A: MP3 would be more popular than others and it can be recognized by many devices besides iPhone. But since it is a compressed format, its quality is not as good as M4A. So if you want to get better quality, you'd better select M4A. Generally, we do not recommend WAV format since it is too large.