dvd

Movie411 captures information about even the most esoteric and ancient movies and saves the information along with their movie covers to your computer. The program works without glitches and offers an intuitive user interface.

Movie411 downloads as an executable file directly to your computer. You will need to manually create a shortcut on your desktop for easy access to this program. The program is very handy if you want to quickly find and save information about a particular movie. There are no Help files, though, so you learn as you go, but the user interface is rather intuitive so it'… Read more

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Weird Al Yankovic says next album will be his last.

- Australian scientists uncover "God's bathtub."

- These Blu-ray discs will last 1,000 years.

- You guys, Xanga is about to shut down unless we give them $60k.

- This teenager would rather go to jail than play his Xbox 360.… Read more

The days of physical media are slowly but surely drawing to a close. Of the last 10 movies I rented, eight came from Amazon Instant Video and one from iTunes. There wasn't a shiny silver platter in sight.

That said, lots of folks have giant DVD libraries, and with good reason. DVDs are cheap. They work great in minivans that have DVD players. And, um, oh, what was that third one again? I can't...sorry. Oops.

I kid, I kid. I'm just jokingly making the case for why you might want BDlot DVD ISO Master, a free … Read more

Those with large DVD collections may want a program to back them up on their computer hard drives. If so, you'll pass on Mp4DVD for Mac, which didn't work well for us.

Available as freeware, Mp4DVD for Mac downloaded quickly and installation did not require any user interaction. It also didn't include any user instruction, and technical support did not appear to be available. Fortunately, the user interface was easy to use, albeit dated. The program asks the user to drag and drop a DVD icon into it for ripping. There are no options available for file … Read more

We've tried many freeware DVD rippers and converters, but so far, few have stood out. When we saw that the latest release of ZC DVD Ripper Platinum was listed as freeware, we were intrigued: Perhaps it's a premium tool that's now free? Or maybe a free trial version of shareware? Unfortunately, we were never able to clear that up with ZC DVD Ripper Platinum. Worse, we couldn't even use it.

The latest release of ZC DVD Ripper Platinum, version 3, is listed as ready for Windows 8 and includes "major" bug fixes. It requires … Read more

Still renting, buying, and/or owning movies on shiny silver discs? Believe it or not, I suspect most people are doing at least one of those.

And shiny silver discs require a shiny-silver-disc player, hence today's deal. Until the clock strikes midnight (ET), and while supplies last, Daily Steals has the refurbished Samsung BD-E5400 Blu-ray player for $45 shipped. It sells new for $99.99.

Update: Looks like it's sold out.

Like any good Blu-ray player, this one features built-in Wi-Fi, and can stream from a handful of services: CinemaNow (is that still a thing?), Netflix, Pandora, and … Read more

The number of video conversion programs available makes choosing a good one difficult. Though it's basically functional, the lack of features and problematic setup make VidConvert for Mac a less desirable option.

VidConvert is available as a free trial version with a three-minute conversion time limit; the full, unrestricted program requires payment of $7.99. The program installs quickly. Unfortunately, after initiating the program, the user must complete an additional download from a separate site before conversion can take place. This second download requires Terminal operations, which is a lot to ask of all but the most experienced Mac … Read more

Most DVD players don't have DVD burners the way they have CD burners. iSee DVD Creator will help you put media onto a DVD, but it's not for rookie users. The program's creation process is not too great. Worse, it's not nearly as smooth as competing DVD-burning software.

The program only gives you a quick sample of a few minutes if you haven't paid. The program doesn't welcome you with open arms, as many of the features you want to experiment with have to be done in a specific order to work. During testing, … Read more

Unlike zipping files, creating compressed ISO archives isn't as easy as a simple right click. Free ISO Creator is a solid tool to help you turn multiple files into a writable ISO image file. The program does exactly what it says it will. However, it's not the easiest or most customizable creation software you'll ever use.

The program gains major points just for being free. There aren't many similar programs that can say the same. However, there are a good deal of things missing that might be available in a paid program. Free ISO Creator is … Read more