# Free program to convert mp4s into something usable **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 26, 2013, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387 "2013-02-26T00:02:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/1 "2013-02-26T00:02:52Z")
I’m having the usual problem with my mp4 files - they appear too choppy in almost any program I play them in. I’d like to convert them into something I can actually work with, but I’m having a hard time finding a free downloadable program to convert them. Does anyone know how to convert mp4s into avis or something else that won’t look choppy? ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/2 "2013-02-26T00:09:26Z")
> **[FFmpeg](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FFmpeg)** > > FFmpeg is a free and open-source software project consisting of a suite of libraries and programs for handling video, audio, and other multimedia files and streams. At its core is the command-line ffmpeg tool itself, designed for processing of video and audio files. It is widely used for format transcoding, basic editing (trimming and concatenation), video scaling, video post-production effects and standards compliance (SMPTE, ITU). > FFmpeg also includes other tools: ffplay, a simple media player... ---
**Author:** ![steviep24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5f9b8f/32.png) [@steviep24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steviep24)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/3 "2013-02-26T00:23:12Z")
You could try Any Video Converter [http://www.any-video-converter.com/products/for\_video\_free/](http://www.any-video-converter.com/products/for_video_free/) Free version works very well. Can also be used to download and convert videos from YouTube. ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/4 "2013-02-26T00:40:43Z")
I found this on my own > **[AVI video converter - convert your videos to AVI](https://video.online-convert.com/convert-to-avi)** > > Online media converter to convert your video from over 50 source formats to AVI in high quality. Optional settings can be provided to enhance the quality. and it seems to work. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/5 "2013-02-26T00:48:59Z")
It sounds to me that your real problem is that these .mp4s are too high resolution (HD) for your video card and/or other system resources to handle. So, what you really need is to “downsample” the resolution to something your system doesn’t choke on. I don’t have a whole lot of hands-on with doing such, but look into programs called Handbrake and/or AVIdemux. (don’t worry, should work for .mp4’s) There _might_ also be video players capable of real-time downsampling so that you don’t necessarily have to go through the step of converting them, which can be time consuming. ---
**Author:** ![deltasigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e5b9ba/32.png) [@deltasigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deltasigma)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/6 "2013-02-26T03:40:07Z")
[Freemake](http://www.freemake.com/free_video_converter/) is free as the name implies, not crippled or nagware and has many built-in conversion profiles for standard devices. Lots of mobile profiles but there should be something to fit your needs without having to get your hands dirty. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/7 "2013-02-26T03:49:01Z")
If you have VLC, it does conversions, and you could at least try that first. Look for the “convert/save” menu. I just converted a small mp4 to mpg. However, it might not be powerful enough to fulfill your requirements completely. ---
**Author:** ![deltasigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e5b9ba/32.png) [@deltasigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deltasigma)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/8 "2013-02-26T04:10:17Z")
I’d be cautious about converting to mpg. That is a much older compression algorithm and will take up quite bit more space for the same resolution, bit rate, etc. edit: of course for DVD’s that is the only option since it is the standard that is used by the .VOB files. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/9 "2013-02-26T16:57:41Z")
> [@steviep24](#): > > You could try Any Video Converter > [http://www.any-video-converter.com/products/for\_video\_free/](http://www.any-video-converter.com/products/for_video_free/) > > Free version works very well. Can also be used to download and convert videos from YouTube. What’s the “catch” with these free programs? (Same question for all the free converters mentioned in the thread, not just this one.) How do they profit? Are we sure there’s no malware? (BTW, I downloaded one converter from iorgsoft – for flv to mp4 or such – and wasted hours converting a large movie before discovering the result was unusual. It had warned about a “watermark” in the result, if I didn’t pay, which seemed OK. But the “watermark” was in fact a huge notice across the middle of every frame making the result unusable.) ---
**Author:** ![deltasigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e5b9ba/32.png) [@deltasigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deltasigma)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/10 "2013-02-26T17:13:42Z")
I’ve used freemake a few dozen times to rip whole dvd’s and do straight conversions. I’ve had it choke on some dvd authoring situations where I’ve tried to shrink say 12gig down to 4.7, but other than that, no problems at all. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/11 "2013-02-26T20:04:32Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > What’s the “catch” with these free programs? (Same question for all the free converters mentioned in the thread, not just this one.) > > How do they profit? Are we sure there’s no malware? The _catch_ with [_Free_ Software](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software#Definition) (as opposed to shareware/crippleware/trials) will vary depending on the [license](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software_license). ---
**Author:** ![Blakeyrat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blakeyrat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blakeyrat)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/12 "2013-02-26T23:13:51Z")
Even my wimpy Netbook (MSI Wind 1000) bought like 4 years ago had no trouble decoding full screen (1024x800-ish) MP4s without stuttering. Similarly, even first generation iPads had no problems at all. Are you streaming the data from HD? You might have a problem with your HD-- stuttering MP4s is definitely not normal for any reasonable modern computers. ---
**Author:** ![deltasigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e5b9ba/32.png) [@deltasigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deltasigma)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2013, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-program-to-convert-mp4s-into-something-usable/651387/13 "2013-02-27T00:05:19Z")
I’m sure you probably mean progressive and not interlaced, but since you didn’t specify, I wanted to mention that since there’s a big difference in the demands it will place on the system, mainly the graphics processor. 1080i isn’t a big deal, but 1080p is.