I have just bought a Mac and recently not able yet to copy/convert the video from a DVD and play it on an iPod. So far, I haven't been able to succeed. I got VIDEO_TS folders full of 1GB files, but not 1 single file which I can then, transfer to an iPod. It is difficult to watch a movie split in three segments, which you have to manually play one after another.
Here is my question: how do I rip/copy a movie from a DVD and not only rip, but also convert to a single file so I can play it on my iPod?
You may use a DVD ripping software for Mac OS to rip/convert a DVD movie to 1 single MP4 video file which can be played on the iPod. We strongly recommenda DVD ripper tool called iFunia DVD to iPod Converter. It's really easy to use yet powerful enough to finish this work for all skill levels, even a novice of Mac OS.
As you may know, iPod can only support video formats like M4V, MP4 and MOV. You can learn more details about what video formats iPod supports. So you need to use iFunia DVD Ripper to rip, copy and convert the content of a DVD movie to one single MP4 video file to be played on your iPod.
Step 1: Download & install iFunia DVD to iPod Converter for Mac
We’ll be using a very nice DVD Ripping tool for Mac OS called iFunia DVD to iPod Converter ( Mac OS only ) for ripping DVD movie into 1 single file, head over here and download the free trial version.
Make sure you have updated your iFunia DVD to iPod Converter to version 2.0 or later. If you don't have DVD to iPod Converter 2.0 or later version installed, get it now.
Step 2: Run iFunia DVD to iPod Converter for Mac
Now get your DVD disc and insert it. Then run iFunia DVD to iPod Converter on your Mac and click the big button "Load..." to load your DVD disk, you may see the name of DVD Movie disk if you insert DVD disk before running this DVD ripper tool. This may take up to a minute or two depending on the contents of the DVD and the speed of your optical drive.
Step 3: Select the titles you'd like to convert
A movie DVD usually has several titles. However, only the first title is the content of DVD movie ( you may recognize it from the 'Length', the largest title is the movie ), the other titles are the theatrical trailers. You may un-check the options not to convert these useless titles. Just check the first title option and convert all chapters of DVD movie content to 1 single video file for iPod.
The shorter titles on the DVD are usually the video backgrounds used in the DVD menu screens and DVD extras like movie trailers. Unless you are a graphic artist, you probably don't want to convert these titles.
Step 4: Change the output settings to make the video look the best on iPod
iPod supports H.264 and MPEG-4 video only. You may learn more details about iPod supported video formats here.
Here I set the output video format to 'iPod Touch MPEG-4 Video (*.mp4)', Video Codec as 'H.264', Resolution as '480*320', Bitrate as '768', Frame Rate as '30', Audio Codec as 'AAC' by default. Remember that the output file size mostly depends on the Bitrate you set. Larger Bitrate, larger file size. Actually video with bitrate as 768 is acceptable for watching on iPod.
Step 5: Start converting DVD movies into 1 single MP4 file
Now you may click the big button "Start" to begin ripping DVD movies into 1 single MP4 video file for iPod. The Convert progress bar shows you how much of the convert process is completed. The longer your movie and the larger its Bitrate, the longer the convert will take. The ripping time will depend on several variables including: the duration of the video file, the speed of your computer, what other activity your computer is currently doing, the codec you selected (H264 or MP4) and the bitrate you set.
Once the convert is complete, iFunia DVD to iPod Converter will place on your Desktop a new MP4 format version of your movie that will play on the iPod. Double-click the new file and play it to make sure it looks as you expect.
To get the movie onto your iPod, launch iTunes 6 (or later). If you do not have it, download iTunes now. Drag your new converted movie file into your iTunes library in the folder or playlist of your choosing.
Attach your iPod to your computer and sync the iPod with iTunes. If you're connecting your iPod for the first time, you'll need to name it, and choose how you'd like to manage your music and video. Check the option "Automatically sync songs and videos to my iPod" so your music and video from the iTunes library will automatically snyc to your iPod. The sync may take a few minutes. When syncing is done, eject your iPod and take your movies with you.
DVD to iPod Converter for Mac is a powerful Mac DVD ripping software to rip encrypted movie DVDs to H.264 and MPEG-4 video for playback perfectly on your iPod. The converted MP4 video can be used for playback on iPod Nano, iPod Classic, iPod Touch.
(PC user? Get Windows version here)
(File Size: 5.4 MB)