Dec 11, 2018 - You can watch Netflix even if you're not connected to the Internet by downloading movies and TV shows to your iPad or Mac. Learn how here.
At one time the idea of watching movies on a Mac seemed both quaint and inconvenient. After all, you already had a TV and its accouterments in the rumpus room. Why gather friends and family around the desk in the corner of the living room to watch movies on a 17-inch iMac? But times are changing. A home media center is no longer a crazy idea. Nor would anyone look askance if you moved into that same rumpus room and devoted some of its time to entertainment.
Once you accept the notion of a Mac as a home media player, your next thoughts naturally turn to movies and, likely, the iTunes Store. But the Store isn’t the end-all-and-be all of online movie sources. Although outfits such as and demand that their content be watched on devices that don’t bear the Apple brand, there are a handful of other sources for movies that you can play on your Mac. Step up to the ticket booth and check out these options. The iTunes Store We can hardly begin without mentioning what the iTunes Store provides. Of any source, the iTunes Store is the most Mac friendly. Offering thousands of movies for purchase or rental, the Store’s movies are playable on a Mac, Windows PC, Apple TV, iPod, and iPhone.
You can transfer them to and play them on any computer authorized with the Apple ID used to purchase or rent the movie. The Store sells and rents both standard definition and HD movies. There are currently more than 280 HD movies, available in the 720p (1280 by 720) format. Many feature 5.1 surround-sound soundtracks as well. Apple's prices are based on a movie's age and format. Apple characterizes movies as being library (meaning older) or new. Prices generally shake out as follow: standard-definition library titles cost $10 to purchase; new standard-definition titles are $15; all HD titles cost $20; iTunes Extras movies, which contain bonus DVD-like material, cost $15 in SD format or $20 in HD (there are some exceptions to iTunes Extras pricing, however).
ITunes StoreAs for rentals, standard-definition library titles cost $3, and new library titles in standard definition cost $4. Library HD rentals cost $4, and new HD rentals cost $5 (iTunes Extras content is not available for rentals).
After you download a rental movie, you have 30 days to watch it. After you start watching it, you have 24 hours to finish it; the movie is automatically removed from you Mac after that period. During those 24 hours, you can watch the movie as many times as you like. Like all videos sold at the Store, you can't burn movies in a form playable on a DVD player.
You can, however, burn purchased movies as data for backup purposes. Amazon Video On Demand is one of the few movie services other than the iTunes Store that’s not actively hostile to the Mac. It can afford to be magnanimous because it streams movies via a Web browser, even one that sits on your Mac. You can also watch the service’s movies on TiVo, Roku players, compatible Sony Bravia devices, Panasonic TVs that support Viera Cast, and compatible Samsung HDTVs. You’re allowed to download videos to up to two compatible devices—a TiVo and Windows PC, for example. Regrettably a Mac isn’t one of those compatible devices.
Clearly, Amazon Video On Demand is not the ideal service for Mac users, but it does offer a couple of advantages over the iTunes Store. For one, if you purchase a movie it's accessible to stream on any Internet-connected computer, so can watch it on your laptop while visiting the in-laws without having to remember to copy it to that Mac's hard drive. Another—particularly if you're willing to broaden your video diet to include TV shows—is price. Amazon, like the iTunes Store, sells individual TV episodes for $2 (SD) and $3 (HD).
But purchase a season and you’ll save money at Amazon. Amazon Video On DemandFor example, the first season of Mad Men costs $20 (SD) and $35 at the iTunes Store. Amazon charges $18 (SD) and $28 (HD). Dexter Season 2 at the Store is $24 (SD) and $36 (HD).
The same season costs $19 (SD) and $29 (HD) at Amazon. Even if you're interested in movies only, Amazon also offers deals on current movie rentals. For example, recently you could rent. The Store’s rental price that day was $4. One could very reasonably argue that the iTunes Store provides more value—you actually have the content on your hard drive rather than in the cloud, and you can play them on an iPod, iPhone, and Apple TV.
But if your intention is to watch the video only on a TV connected to a computer or on the Mac's screen itself, Amazon could be the better deal, provided that you have fast and reliable broadband. (To stream HD content you should have a broadband connection of 5mbps or better.) Also, those Amazon videos are available to you wherever you have a computer and fast Internet connection. Netflix The-DVD-in-the-mailbox company, has offered movie streaming for a couple of years through its Watch Instantly feature. If you have a Netflix plan starting at $9 (one DVD at a time) you're welcome to use this service, which offers more than 20,000 movies and TV episodes. Not all that long ago, much of this content was Grade B material and/or ancient, but Netflix is making efforts to bring better content to the service. Recent release movies are starting to appear. And although you won’t see last night’s episodes of your favorite shows (or likely anything from the current season) Netflix does offer season packages of such popular shows as Heroes, Weeds, Californication, Lost, The Office, and Dexter.
(Regrettably, no HBO content is offered for streaming.) Netflix Watch InstantlyOn a Mac you’d normally watch Netflix streams via a Web browser. However, both the and media center applications allow you to watch Netflix Watch Instantly content. Or, if you’d like to use Apple’s media center application, Front Row, you can install the open-source, which adds both Netflix Watch Instantly and to Front Row. The visual quality of Netflix's content doesn't match that of either the iTunes Store or Amazon Video On Demand—both of which look quite good. The faster your Internet connection, the better the picture. But even with a reasonably fast connection I’ve yet to see a stream that comes close to the look of a DVD (or iTunes or Amazon content), much less HD. But it’s hard to beat the price, particularly if you’re already a Netflix subscriber.
YouTube Of course YouTube has movies no, real movies. Okay, some are real old movies, but movies nonetheless. And they're free.
If you’ve been wanting to catch up on your spaghetti westerns or B-movie drive-in fare (and a few gems thrown in for good measure), point your browser at. And keep YouTube bookmarked.
Reports are that YouTube is talking to major movie studios about offering movies for rent. Boxee As mentioned earlier, Boxee is a media center application rather than a source for videos. However, it includes a couple of plug-ins that can lead you to movies scattered across the Web. For example, install the Internet Archive plug-in and you can view a vast number of old films (including silent films) that are now in the public domain. The Public Torrents plug-in allows you to download this same kind of content and view it within Boxee.
All content available through Boxee is free. Boxee's Internet Archive contentSpeaking of Boxee, with the Apple TV 3.x update, the popular (and free) Apple TV hack that allowed you to run Boxee and XBMC, broke. Its creators are working to make it compatible, but in the meantime, the $50 hack does work with the Apple TV 3.0.1 update.) 6. Hulu A popular destination for watching TV episodes and clips, also offers full-length movies. Similar to YouTube’s movies, the films available from Hulu aren’t recent blockbusters or Oscar-winning fare, but you’re sure to find a handful of movies to kill an evening.
Like Hulu’s TV shows, these movies are free and include the occasional short advertisement. Hulu's moviesYou’re welcome to watch Hulu from within a Web browser, but, Boxee, or Plex provide the better viewing experience. Of the three avenues, Hulu Desktop is the most reliable because, unlike with Boxee and Plex, the people running Hulu actually want it to work.
Hulu has taken pains in the past to to the service. Roll 'em It wasn't long ago that video-on-demand was a pipe dream. Yet, almost without realizing it, that dream has become reality thanks to faster broadband and the increasing number of gadgets that can take advantage of it. With these resources at your disposal, your Mac becomes an important—if not primary—component of that dream.
Introducing Apple iMovie (Mac & iOS Only) iMovie is an innovative video editing software created by Apple Inc. Together with iPhoto, GarageBand and iDVD (discontinued), iMovie is another component of Apple's iLife suite of software applications for editing videos and making movies. IMovie for iOS is also available, with which you can even edit video on Apple's iOS products like iPhone, iPad and iPod.
But the PC version of iMovie is unavailable. To make movies in Windows, you have to find an iMovie for PC alternative. Want A Video Editor Similar to iMovie but for PC? Nowadays, Apple's Mac and Microsoft's Windows is the main operating systems for personal users. Many people use both Mac and Windows PC computers - usually Windows at office, while Mac at home. Someone may also have transferred from Mac to Windows for its more and more optimized features.
If you're previously a Mac user and familiar with iMovie, now want to edit videos on your Windows PC computer, you need an iMovie for PC video editing software. There is so-called virtualization technology that enables you to run Mac and thus iMovie on Windows. The best virtualization software is. But you have to pay for operating system and the software itself; it requires dual boot and runs the OS-in-OS slowly. Why not simply get an iMovie but works in Windows? There are an array of video editing software applications for Windows PC. Like Movavi Video Editor, AVS Video Editor, Cyberlink PowerDirector, Corel VideoStudio, and so on.
Movavi Video Editor Is The Closest iMovie for PC Alternative The recommended iMovie for PC equivalent is Movavi Video Editor. Like iMovie, Movavi Video Editor is a complete solution for importing/capturing, editing and sharing videos.
It includes all video editing tools for both general and advanced users. Beginners will find it easy to use, while advanced users will get what they want. The key features of Movavi Video Editor include broad support for various video sources, video effects, transitions, titles, endless sharing possibilities. 7-day fully functional free trial version is available. Version: 15.0.1 File Size: 54.5 MB Platforms: Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, Vista, XP The information about the software prices and registration can be found What Movavi Video Editor Excels? On one hand, some professional iMovie for PC alternative video editing programs has complex user interface, which makes it hard to master and use.
On the other hand, some iMovie for Windows software applications only provide you with basic video editing tools. They are not the video editing software at the same level with iMovie. Movavi Video Editor is the best iMovie for PC substitute in our opinions. It compromises simplicity and features. Regular users will easily edit video with common tools like Trim, Split, Merge, Rotate, Add Music, and so on; Professional users will control everything as they want. Movavi Video Editor lets you easily capture/digitize, create picture-in-picture movies, apply chroma-key effect, etc. Movavi Video Editor makes it easier than ever to make stunning slideshows.
Just import photos and videos, add music and stylish titles, customize transitions, and it's ready for sharing your masterpiece with the world. Key Features of Movavi Video Editor for Windows.
An extremely intuitive interface to organize video, edit video and share video. Make your own slideshow as easy as A-B-C. Improve video quality and perspective with tons of special effects like Matrix, Particles, Denoise, Brightness/Contrast, Chroma Key, Split Screen, Zoom, etc. Easily add music, titles, voiceover and recordings. Choose from dozens of transitions between frames.
Split, crop, join and rotate videos in clicks. Provides Storyboard and Timeline views. Add multiple video, audio and title tracks. Import and export 2D and 3D video in any format: SD, HD and DVD.
Capture video from camera, camcorder (DV/HDV), and TV-tuner. Digitize your old VHS tape. Capture video with webcam and record online video. Import and edit 3D videos.
Supports any sound card input like microphone, computer, electric guitar, and more. Supports all popular video and audio formats, including AVI, MP4, MKV, FLV, QuickTime, VOB, MP3, even video from DVD discs and more.
Save a video file in the desired formats, for your mobile device, or burn movies on a DVD. Directly share video on YouTube, Facebook, or Vimeo. Apple iMovie vs Movavi Video Editor Below is a comparison table for Apple's iMovie and the best iMovie for PC equivalent - Movavi Video Editor. Features Movavi Video Editor Apple iMovie Supported Platform Windows and Mac Mac & iOS Editing Drag and Drop 3D Editing Animation Tools Audio Transitions - Color Correction Direct Camcorder Capture DVD Burning Green Screen (Chroma Key) HD Support Speed Change Video Transitions Maximum Video Tracks Unlimited 2 Maximum Audio Tracks Unlimited 6 Supported Formats Saving Presets QuickTime, Mobile Devices, DVD, HD, MPEG-4 QuickTime, Mobile Devices Output Video Formats 3GP, 3GP2, AVI, FLV, M2TS, MKV, MP4 with H.264 codec; M2TS, MPEG with MPEG2 codec. MOV Output Audio Formats M4A, MP3, OGG, WAV, AIF - Input Video Formats??AVI, MP4, FLV, MKV, MOV, MPEG2-TS with H.264 codec; MPEG with MPEG1/MPEG2 codec; WMV with VC-1 codec. MOV, M4V Input Audio Formats M4A, MP3, OGG, WAV, AIF M4A, MP3 Skill Level Prosumer Consumer - Application Type Desktop Mobile - Price $39.95 $15 Other iMovie for PC Competitors Movavi Video Editor is only one of iMovie for Windows alternatives in the long list. Depending on what you need and the price, AVS Video Editor, Cyberlink PowerDirector, or Corel VideoStudio may also a good choice.
All can be tried for free before you make a decision to buy.