wmv

YouTube Downloader is a popular, free program that enables you to download and convert online videos (legal content, to which you have the rights) for later viewing on your desktop or mobile device. It can convert files to MOV, MP4, 3GP, WMV, AVI, or MP3.

The name "YouTube Downloader" is terribly misleading because the program, in fact, downloads a whole lot more than just YouTube videos. On the developer's site, you can find an extensive list of additional supported sites including Facebook and Vimeo. This wide net of support easily pushes YouTube Downloader to the top of … Read more

Debut Video Recording Software Professional Version from NCH Software turns your computer into a flexible, capable video capture and recording device. It can record video from a wide range of sources, including VHS VCRs, and save it in many formats; it can also capture screenshots and save them as JPEG stills. It will even capture and record video playing on your PC's screen. When all else fails but you've just got to save that clip, Debut can save the day.

Debut detected our video capture and playback devices, but it will automatically configure itself as a screen capture … Read more

The much-beloved, multiplatform, open-source VLC Media Player has finally become available as a free app for the iPhone 3GS and 4, and recent models of the iPod Touch, after earlier only being available on the iPad.

The primary appeal of VLC is that it will play many more video formats than the few natively supported by iOS devices. When you sync your device using iTunes, you just drag and drop videos into the File Sharing window for VLC in the App tab on iTunes, and the videos will appear in a scrolling, vertical list the next time you open VLC … Read more

Perian is a free, open-source plug-in that can help QuickTime users play more formats, including most major codecs.

Billed as a "Swiss Army Knife for QuickTime," Perian installs a preference pane and automatically installs components for over two dozen formats--everything from AVI, FLV, and DivX to curios like DTS Coherent Acoustics audio, Xiph Vorbis (in Matroska), and various subtitle formats. The settings give you a few options, for the likes of alerts and audio output, but most of Perian's functionality happens invisibly during playback.

The one format that Perian won't help with is WMV (so you'… Read more

Image by Image seems simple enough. True to its name, the purpose of the program is to allow users to view AVI and WMV files image by image, or frame by frame. Such a program has the potential to be very useful, but unfortunately, Image by Image is more confusing than useful.

The program's interface is plain, a basic media viewer with four buttons at the top. The Open button is pretty straightforward, and we opened a video with the program easily enough. The next button lets users alternate between normal speed and "image by image," and … Read more

There are a lot of video file converters out there, and most of them are quite similar, allowing users to convert videos between different file formats. Unfortunately, the only thing that sets Leap Free All to AVI MPEG4 WMV MOV FLASH Converter apart from the competition is the fact that it doesn't work very well.

We had high hopes when we first opened the program. The interface is clean and intuitive, with large graphical buttons. We were excited to see that the program also includes a YouTube downloader, and we decided to try that first. We were disappointed to … Read more

There are a number of video formats that are used for compressing and distributing videos these days. While most use common and open standards such as H.264 that are readily viewable, others may be more obscure and will require you to install a codec to view videos encoded in them.… Read more

WMA MP3 Converter is a great tool for converting audio files to different types. By offering much more than the name implies, this turned out to be a surprising and helpful program.

Its interface was a relief, thanks to command icons that are scaled back to the absolute simplest form. We were never confused or in need of instructions since the entire layout is so intuitive. We were surprised to discover that WMA MP3 Converter isn't just a converter for WMA files. In fact, you can take any audio and video file and convert it to a sound file … Read more

Leap Free AVI FLV MP4 WMV to HD Video Converter offers a simple solution for converting video files into high definition video. With a simple layout and fast results, this is a great tool for video quality buffs.

The program's interface is impressively simple, thanks to its onscreen instructions and easy-to-use commands. We never felt lost and were always in control. The program allowed us to track down as many AVI, FLV, MP4, and WMV files as we wanted and place them in a queue. From there, it was a simple one-step process to convert these files and send … Read more