If you’ve never heard of the MKV file format, you’re not alone. It’s a newer standard than familiar file types like MOV or the more standard MP4 format. But there’s good reason it’s been popping up, and now is a great time to learn about converting MKV to MP4.
- The benefit of converting MKV files into your desired media format is that you can play your MKV on any media player. Additionally, you have the freedom to import to video editor and change the content as you want. Two Tools to Convert MKV Files on Mac (OS X El Capitan) Free Online Way – Apowersoft Free Online Video Converter.
- This is a free Mac MKV converter that provides an open-source, cross-platform video converting service, specifically designed for Mac users. This free media conversion platform for video files is also adjustable and can help create better resolution, frame rate, bit rate, and many more.
Best free MKV to MP4 AVI MP3 AAC AC3 file converter for Mac. 4Video MKV to MP4 Converter is the best free MKV file converting software for Mac users. It is capable of converting Blu-ray MKV movie to MP4, MOV, M4V and audio (MP3, AAC, M4A and OGG) with no quality loss.
MKV is gaining traction because it can support an endless number of videos, audio files, pictures, or subtitled tracks in one file. It’s also open-standard, and free. The term MKV is acronymous for “Matroska,” commonly known as Russian nesting dolls. (See, all kinds of files nesting into one larger file!)
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Convert MKV to MP4 or get a media player with native support for MKV. Setapp is a one-stop toolkit that solves any problem on Mac.
This ability to wrap all types of media into one file type is what makes MKV so popular. But it’s only available to a limited number of devices, and most often used as a video file-type rather than for true multimedia files. Because it’s open-standard, there’s no advantage for large tech firms like Apple to support MKV, or adopt it onto their platforms.
In fact, there’s no native support for MKV within macOS. If you were sent an MKV file, you would quickly have to convert the MKV to MP4. In this article, we’ll talk you through how the conversion works using several different MKV to MP4 converter apps.
MKV to MP4 without losing quality
Remember when we said MKV files were still not terribly popular? Don’t worry, we haven’t forgotten about that. There will still be plenty of times you’ll need an MKV converter for your Mac, especially if you’re going to share your files with anyone. Chances are they will find the MP4 format much easier.
For this use-case, we recommend Permute converter. It’s an app focused on converting just about any and all file types to – well, just about anything! It’s really simple to use, too. Here’s how to convert MKV to MP4 using Permute:
- Open Permute.
- From the menu bar, go to File > Open.
- Select the MKV file on your Mac you’d like to convert.
- Select ‘Open.’
- From the ‘Video’ dropdown menu, select ‘MP4.’
- Click the ‘play’ button in the sub-window housing your MKV file. Keep in mind the video itself has a play button, too; the play button on the sub-window is what starts the conversion.
That's it! Your MKV file will convert to the MP4 format. Keep a few things in mind before you start a transfer, though. In the upper-right corner of the sub-window, you’ll see a gear icon. This is where you can control where your converted file is placed. You can also make other changes like rotating the video, should you need that functionality.
Permute is also adept at batch conversion of files. If you had a few MKV videos you wanted to convert to the MP4 format, you don’t need to go one-by-one. You could choose multiple videos to convert in step three above, if they were all in the same location on your Mac. If the videos were in different places (one may be in downloads, the other in ‘documents,’ another in a folder – you get it) you could simply repeat steps two, three, and four until all your videos were added.
The ‘sub-window’ in Permute holds files to be converted, so adding multiple videos will convert them all the same way. Keep that in mind before you start; if you didn’t want all your videos to be MP4s, you’d have to create new groups.
That’s pretty simple, though. On the bottom left of the video is a gear icon, where you’ll see an option to ‘create new group.’ Simply do that and you’ll find the video in its own sub-window, ready for conversion to a different format.
Got a file you can't convert? Here's how to change video formats flexibly.
How to play MKV on Mac
Because MKV isn’t natively supported, you shouldn’t expect your Mac to spin up QuickTime to play downloaded files as it does with so many other media file types. Instead, we have two great options for MKV playback: Elmedia Player, and Movist Pro.
Elmedia Player is exceptionally strong at playing just about any file type you can throw at it. The app uses hardware accelerated decoding to play files, which ensures your MKV playback will be strong. Elmedia player also supports MP3, MP4, SWF, FLV, AVI, MOV, and DAT file types.
Here’s how you can play any MKV file using Elmedia Player:
- Open Elmedia Player.
- From the menu bar, go to File > Open.
- Select the MKV file on your Mac you’d like to play.
- Select 'Open.'
And that’s it! Your MKV file will automatically play in Elmedia Player. In the Elmedia Player window, you’ll be able to pause and play your file, fast forward or rewind, and choose the volume level. On the bottom right of the screen you’ll see a gear icon, where you’re able to finesse the playback speed, manage audio and subtitle delays, control the brightness, saturation, contrast, gamma, and hue of your video, and enjoy a full equalizer for your MKV video files.
Movist Pro is just as impressive when it comes to video playback. Here’s how to play an MKV video on Movist Pro:
- Open Movist Pro.
- From the menu bar, select File > Open File.[MKV3]
- Select the MKV file on your Mac that you’d like to play.
- Select ‘Open.’
Deja vu, eh?! It’s the same process as Elmedia Player, which is great. Movist Pro has a lot of really great things going for it, too.
It has a really minimalist interface, with controls that quickly dive out of the way when a video is being played. The scroll-bar is as far to the bottom as possible, and the ‘play’ button is all the way on the bottom left. Even with controls on-screen, you end up seeing more of the video than with most other players.
Movist also supports the Mac’s native picture-in-picture mode, which pins a video to the bottom-right side of your screen. It’s a great way to keep track of videos while doing other things.
If you’re just looking to play a particular section of a file, Movist Pro has a really neat feature that lets you choose a range within a file, and loop the playback for that range. You can also add bookmarks to any video; an excellent option if you want to keep tabs on a video lecture, or mark favorite parts of a movie.
When you need to convert MKV to MP4, there’s nothing better than a simple, effective converter. For our liking, Permute is the way to go. It’s simple, effective, and doesn’t create any issues with the converted files. Too often we’ve seen converters which degrade the quality of a video.
Playback is also a critical component. While Permute can convert with ease, you may not always need that feature. Besides, you’ll want to watch your converted video files, too!
Elmedia Player and Movist Pro are both excellent video player apps. In our testing, each performed spectacularly. We also viewed converted files on Elmedia Player and Movist Pro to ensure there were no issues on conversion or playback. All three apps worked perfectly.
And all three – Elmedia Player, Movist Pro, and Permute – are available for free as part of a 7-day trial of Setapp, the world’s best suite of productivity apps for your Mac. Setapp also affords you free access to dozens more of the best Mac apps, which span all kinds of use-cases.
When your free trial period is over, Setapp is only $9.99 per month. If you pay for a full year in advance, it brings the total down to $8.99 per month, a 10 percent discount! Families will enjoy Setapp’s $19.99 per month plan, which provides unlimited access to the full setapp catalog on up to four different Macs.
It’s an incredible deal. Give Setapp a try today!
Meantime, prepare for all the awesome things you can do with Setapp.
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MKV is a great file format for storing videos. Unfortunately, these files cannot be played by most DVD players in the market. Therefore, there is a need of software that can convert the MKV videos to DVD. Thankfully, there are quite a few pieces of MKV to DVD converter free software that can perform this task. After all, you may require a DVD version of a video file for a variety of reasons.
Part 1: Top 5 MKV to DVD Free Converter for Mac (EL Capitan and Yosemite included)
You are certain to find pieces of software that can run on your Mac OS X computer. Quite a few of them will be free which makes them perfect if you wish to covert large numbers of files from MKV to DVD.
#1. DVD Creator for Mac
Mkv Video Converter Mac
iSkysoft DVD Creator for Mac is a great software to convert MKV to DVD on Mac OS X, including the new EL Capitan, Yosemite, Mountain Lion, Lion, and Snow Leopard. Besides MKV, you can import videos in various formats like MP4, WMV, MOV, AVI, and more. And you also can turn the online videos from YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook and other sites into DVD. Any home made movies with camcorder or phones can be turned to DVD without any fuss. To make your DVD special, you can edit the videos and add a beautiful menu before burning to DVD. Just try it out.
#2. Pavtube Free DVD Creator for Mac
This software is available in both free and paid versions. However, the free version is also capable of converting MKV videos to DVD just as easily as the paid version. Pavtube is considered to be one of the better pieces of software for conversions available for Mac currently.
Pros:- There are free templates for the DVD menu.
- Many useful features are unavailable in the free version.
- You can use this software only for making DVDs and nothing more.
#3. Any Video Converter
Any Video Converter is one of the most popular video converters available. The free version can be used to covert MKV files to DVD. You will find it to be very useful for converting videos on your Mac computer.
Pros:- In spite of it being a freeware, a wide range of formats is supported.
- Videos can be downloaded from various websites.
- The conversion speed is not too good.
- The video editor is very basic.
#4. E.M. Free MKV Video2Dvd
The Free MKV Video2Dvd from Effect Matrix makes it easier to convert the videos from MKV to DVD due to its simple interface.
Pros:- The software has an intuitive interface. You only need to drag and drop the files to the interface.
- There are many menu templates available.
- The supported formats are extremely limited.
#5. MacX Free MKV Video Converter
The MacX Free MKV Video Converter is a great piece of software for converting MKV files into your desired format such as DVD. There are additional features which make the software more useful.
Pros:- The software supports a range of video formats.
- The features in the free version are extremely limited.
- The free version of the software does not support HD videos.
Part 2: Top 5 MKV to DVD Free Converter for Windows 10, 8, 7, XP and Vista
There are many reasons why you may wish to convert MKV files to DVD. Having a DVD copy is a great way to keep backups of your favorite videos. Additionally, you can watch your videos on television by means of a DVD player.
#1. DVD Creator
iSkysoft DVD Creator version allows you to burn MKV to DVD on any windows OS, like Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows XP and Vista. Simply drag and drop any formats videos or videos downloaded from the sites, you can burn high quality DVD. It provides you with many free menu templates so you can customize your DVD to make your own masterpiece.
File Converter For Mac Free
#2. E.M. Free MKV Video2Dvd
It is easily one of the better video converters that you can find for free. You can use it for more purposes than to simply convert files from MKV to DVD.
Pros:- Various subtitle formats are also supported.
- Other hand MKV to DVD conversion all other types of conversions will contain a watermark.
- Most features absent in the free version.
#3. Any Video Converter
Any Video Converter has remained a very popular choice for video conversions ever since it was released. Free versions of this software are available which can help you convert MKV videos to DVD.
Pros:- A wide variety of formats is supported even by the free version.
- Apart from the conversion function, other features are rather basic.
#4. Freemake Video Converter
As the name suggests, the Freemake Video Converter is completely free. Be that as it may, the software is pretty good and you will have no problems in converting your MKV files to DVD.
Pros:- Videos can be converted easily
- The list of supported formats is rather limited.
#5. Super
Super is widely considered to be one of the most powerful conversion tools. Moreover it is available for free. If you want to convert your MKV videos to DVD, this software will be more than capable of fulfilling your wishes.
Pros:- It is one of the most powerful free utilities for converting videos and even audios.
- The range of supported formats is incredibly comprehensive and vast.
- The interface is very poor and complicated.
- Beginners will have a tough time in understanding the various functions.
Nowadays, it is not necessary for you to download a piece of software in order to get your videos converted. There are many websites which offer conversion services which will make it easier to convert MKV to DVD free online. If you are looking for such a website to convert your video files, you can try out Office Converter.
Office Convertor is an online file conversion service. With the help of this website, you can convert various kinds of files from one format to another. It can be used not only on computers but also in your mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. You can use this website to convert your documents, audio files and even videos.
With the help of Office Converter, you can convert your videos from MKV to DVD. Moreover, you can convert the videos for free. It is also possible for you to download and directly convert videos from YouTube. Another great feature of this website is its ability to process batch conversions of YouTube playlists.
How to Burn MKV files to DVD with Office Converter
Burning files to DVD has never been easier thanks to Office Converter. The process of conversion is extremely simple.
- Open the appropriate conversion page in Office Converter in your browser.
- Use the option 'Add files' to add an MKV video file from your computer.
- Let it upload completely.
- If you wish to convert a batch of files, simply add them together.
- Once uploaded, you should click the 'Start Convert' button.
- Wait for the conversion to be completed.
- Download the converted file.
Disadvantages of Using an Online Service to Convert MKV to DVD
Mkv File Converter Mac Freeware
An online service can be quite beneficial while trying to convert video files from one format to another. The most significant of its advantages is certainly the fact that you can use the service without any costs. Be that as it may, such services tend to have quite a few disadvantages.
Vob File Converter Mac Free
- Presence of an Upload Limit
The majority of online file conversion services tend to place a limit on the size of the file that you can upload for conversions. Therefore, it is unlikely that you will be able to convert longer videos such as movies with these services. If you want to increase the size you are allowed to upload, you will have to register yourself with the website. Some websites will charge you during the registration while others will not. - Delay in Conversion
It will not be possible for you to get your videos converted in a short period of time no matter what you want. There are bound to be delays in the conversion especially if you are using their services free of cost. If the service is used widely, the waiting time can be considerable. - File Availability
In order to protect the privacy of your videos, the majority of online file conversion services will be deleting them from their server after 24 hours. While this is certainly beneficial for you, it can also be a problem. After all, you may end up deleting or misplacing the converted video. In such cases, the only option remains is to convert the video all over again.
If you are looking for options to get your MKV videos converted into DVD, you are certain to find many. Of course, you should only end up choosing the correct option for your needs. You can use software for your Mac or Windows computer that has the features you require apart from an excellent conversion system. Alternatively, there are file conversion websites.