For Blu-Ray Discs and HD-DVDs*īecause Blu-Ray discs use different encoding schemes and encryption than regular DVDs, you'll need a different program to copy the Blu-Ray files onto your hard drive. It's a little buggier than Handbrake (in my experience), costs a few bucks, and is newer to the game, but is easier to use. Once you've opened Handbrake, simply select your DVD as a source, then Handbrake will automatically choose the 'main title' (the feature-the longest video file on the DVD), and you can optionally set some advanced parameters, and the location for the file to be saved, then click Start, and Handbrake will take it from there.Īlternatively, you could use the excellent, but very simply app, RipIt, from the Little App Factory, to rip your DVDs.
It will take maybe a half hour to an hour to rip an entire movie.Īfter you've downloaded Handbrake, you'll also need to download and install VLC to help Handbrake, a great little video player and tool app that is also free. You simply insert a DVD, open Handbrake, choose the DVD as your source, and choose a default like 'Apple TV' from the preset list, then click Start. Handbrake, a free program that is downloadable here, is the simplest and best way to convert DVDs to a format that's easily readable by your Mac, your iPhone, your iPod, your iPad, etc. Now, on to the software you'll need: For Ripping AND Transcoding DVDs You'll also need to have at least 6 GB of overhead per DVD on your hard drive, and at least 20 GB of overhead per Blu-Ray, for temporary files.
The first step in the process is 'ripping' the content from your physical DVDs and Blu-Ray discs into your computer.
Ripping: Getting the Movies into Your Computer
There are a few key applications you need before you can do this on your own - I'll describe the programs you need for each step of the process, and how to do everything you need to do to get your videos digitized and readily accessible. today I will introduce you to a few tools I use to help me get all my videos (be they plain old DVDs or newer high definition Blu-Ray discs ) converted and stored on my computer so I can play them on my computer, my iPhone, my iPad, my Apple TV, my Xbox 360, a Playstation 3, and do so from anywhere in the world. I am getting ever closer to the realization of that dream. So even though your compact Mac mini doesn't come with its own Blu-ray reader, there are plenty of external choices out there to get the job done.Note: The guide below still applies, but you can now rip and convert Blu-Ray movies directly in Handbrake if you download MakeMKV (don't even need to run it) then run the following commands in Terminal.app: cd ~ mkdir -p ~/lib ln -s /Applications/MakeMKV.app/Contents/lib/libmmbd.dylib ~/lib/libaacs.dylib ln -s /Applications/MakeMKV.app/Contents/lib/libmmbd.dylib ~/lib/libbdplus.dylib Also note that iDentify is no longer maintained I usually use the free MetaZ application to edit metadata before importing into iTunes nowadays.įor many years, I've been in search of the 'digital nirvana,' where all my videos, songs, and photos were accessible on any device, anywhere, at any time, without having to do a complicated digital dance with wires and different sychronization tools.
Another great option is the Buffalo Meditation, which has Blu-ray reading and burning capabilities, along with a full suite of burning and playback software included in the package. On the other hand, if a thin drive is what you need, the Pioneer BDR-XD05B is a slim, lightweight solution that is also quite portable.
Reading speeds for Mac mini Blu-ray drives tend to increase in correlation with the device's size, so we recommend the Asus BW-16D1X-U because its large size makes it the fastest Blu-ray reader and DVD burner on this list. Also included is the Cyberlink Media Suite, which offers Blu-ray and DVD burning and playback tools. It also includes M-Disc support for longer-life recordings. For both Mac and Windows, this beautifully designed reader offers BDXL support for high-capacity disc-writing for Blu-ray disks, DVDs, and CDs.