Convert Videos, from MP4 to DVD and from DVD to MP4

Many users between the years 2000 and 2009 have collected a large quantity of DVDs of commercial films or discs made at home, which can be viewed comfortably seated on the sofa using a special reader. In the following years the great diffusion of streaming services and portable platforms has greatly reduced this practice, bringing DVDs to take dust in some drawer.
If we wish save the videos on DVD to a digital file or vice versa (bring MP4 to DVD), in this guide we will show you all the free programs designed for these needs, so that you can have maximum control over the content of optical discs and what to keep and what to discard.READ ALSO: How to Convert Videos and DVDs to MP4 or MKV on PC and Mac

How to convert DVD video to MP4 (and vice versa)

In the following chapters we will show you the free programs that we can use on our computer to convert DVD Video optical discs to MP4 video files and vice versa (therefore make DVD Videos starting from one or more MP4). All programs can be used without time limits or limitations on the size of the files or DVD to be created, thus saving us the purchase of expensive and obsolete programs.

Programs to convert DVD to MP4

The first program we recommend to try for the digital conversion of DVD discs is HandBrake.

To use the program, first insert the DVD into the player, wait 2 minutes then start the program and select the DVD player to load the video.
Once the video is loaded into the interface, we check which video and audio tracks to keep, we choose how Format the format MP4, let’s set how Preset the voice 576p25 so we press up on Start Encode.

As a valid alternative to HandBrake we can use the VidCoder program.

In a simple interface we can load the content of any DVD Video, choose which audio and video tracks to keep, choose whether to integrate subtitles, choose the conversion profile (on the button Encoding Settings) and finally convert the disc to an MP4 file by pressing on Convert.

If instead of MP4 files we want to save DVD Videos in MKV (newer format compatible with Smart TVs), we can use a free and effective tool such as MakeMKV.

There is no simpler program to use for converting DVDs to digital video files: to use it we open the program, select the optical disc from which to take the video, select the tracks to be saved, choose a path where to save the new file then press on Make MKV to accomplish the conversion.
If you are a beginner and you are unable to use HandBrake and VidCoder, this is the program for you!

Convert protected DVD

If we try to use the first two programs recommended above with a protected DVD, we will not be able to convert to MP4, given the anti-copy protections integrated on the original media on the market. The only one who has a system that removes the protections is MakeMKV, but alternatively we can also use one of the programs seen in our guide to Best programs to copy DVD (Ripping) to PC.

NOTE: removing the protections to make personal copies is not a crime, the important thing is that the copies never leave our home (we cannot distribute or sell them).

Programs to convert MP4 to DVD

If instead we need a program to bring MP4 to a DVD Video (therefore compatible with table DVD players), we recommend you to try Freemake Video Converter immediately.

To use it, insert a blank DVD into the burner, start the program, press the button Video at the top right, we select the MP4 files to convert, press the button on DVD present at the bottom and finally confirm on Burn. In the same window we can choose whether to create a DVD menu and the quality of the conversion, even if the basic parameters are more than enough to make good DVD Videos.

Another very good program to convert MP4 to DVD is AVStoDVD.

With this program we can quickly convert MP4 videos to a format compatible with DVD Videos, so that we can immediately burn the optical disc. To add videos just press on Open, while to start the conversion process we press the button Start.

If we are looking for a complete and feature-rich program to bring MP4 to DVD, we invite you to try DVD Author Plus.

With it you can immediately load all MP4 files from the integrated folder tree without having to open the file manager every time to complete the creation of the final optical disc. When ours Storyboard displayed below is complete, we set the DVD parameters in the right section of the window, press Next on the top and finalize the operations for burning.

To find other useful programs to convert MP4 to DVD, please read our guide to convert MKV to AVI or burn MKV to DVD.

Conclusions

With the programs listed above we will be able to carry out all types of conversion from MP4 to DVD and from DVD to MP4, so as to save the optical discs of our films from wear and at the same time create DVDs to give to our older relatives or those in possession old DVD players still working.

In another guide we have shown you other programs for convert DVD to MP4 for video to watch on iPhone, so as to make videos (starting from DVD) compatible with the player integrated on the iPhone.
If instead we wanted to convert the videos to see them on Android, we refer you to our guide Convert movies and videos to watch them on a smartphone.