3-Step Video Conversion

excellent
key review info
application features
  • Supports converting file between AVI, MPEG, WMV,ASF, DivX, MOV, RM, RMVB, MP4, MPEG4 and other formats.
  • (6 more, see all...)

Once a tedious job that required a combination of a powerful system, knowledge and skills, video converting has turned into a task any user can cut into with the least effort. The amount of time for the job to complete still depends on the heftiness of the system, but with today's spec standard, there should be absolutely no trouble at all.

The software employed for such task has also changed, giving way to slicker looking, easier to manage interface and options. Codecs have been added to the programs so that the user doesn't have to look for them on the Internet.

WinX Video Converter from Digiarty is a plain and simple video converter that offers a 3-step conversion method, easy to follow by any type of user. It is freeware so you can use it without any restrictions for as long as you need to quench your video converting thirst.

The set of video formats that the application can handle includes the most popular ones, AVI, MPEG, WMV, MP4, FLV, MOV, which can be converted to any of them. Extracting only the audio track is another option in the program, allowing you to save the sound to MP3.

Main application window presents the three major steps to be taken in order to start the conversion process. Adding video, choosing the output format and starting the operation is all it takes to change the video format. Those wishing some fine tuning have nothing to worry about because WinX Video Converter comes prepared with granular control for both audio and video options.

Drag and drop functionality has not been introduced in this version of the software, so a manual approach is the only way to load the videos. But there is a bright side for this procedure: the application will only show you the supported videos.

If just a portion of the movie is what you want to convert, WinX Video Converter brings in the necessary options and lets you select the video section yourself. There are two ways to set the beginning and end of file: dragging by the ends of the seek bar in the preview window or entering the time yourself in the Output Setting section (right below the video clip list). You can also specify your own location to save the resulting file, anywhere on the computer or in the local network.

The lower part of the application window is where all the fine adjustments are made. If you have already selected the output format and the default audio and video settings are not exactly what you need, you can bring them to your standards. As far as audio settings are concerned, WinX Video Converter lets you modify audio quality, sample rate, audio channel and even volume.

For the video settings, you have the possibility to adjust the video frame rate, video quality and resolution (maintain the original size and keep aspect ratio, custom size and keep aspect ratio or customize both size and aspect ratio). You can also enable the use of the high quality engine, but during our testing, we noticed no difference in quality or duration of the conversion process, only a slight increase in the size of the output result.

The conversion operation is quite fast and during the process, the application shows you details such as the amount of time necessary for completion, elapsed time, currently processed frame, start and end selection of the video, as well as the number of frames per second. What may come as a downside to some users is the fact that WinX Video Converter does not preserve the name of the file and the output will be labeled as a number (the number of the video processed by the application since installation). A progress bar shows the current stage of the operation, while percentage comes to complete the sum of details related to the duration of the conversion.

After the action is finished, the user can enable the software to shutdown the computer or to open the containing folder for easy grab. You can stop the operation at any time by pressing the big Stop button in the conversion details window.

The quality of the output result depends mainly on the input file. If the input is of great quality, the result will be appropriate. However, for the best results, I suggest tampering with video resolution and lower the values a bit as it is a well-known fact that no conversion operation can maintain the same quality as the input. Extracting only the audio track from a video is a faster process than video conversion and the quality is great (you can adjust it to up to 320Kbps).

WinX Video Converter does a fine job converting movies and it moves fast, but it will put some load on system resources, especially on the CPU. On a low-specced computer, the application marks its presence with CPU usage reaching even 80%. Heftier machines, however, can handle this quite nicely.


The Good

The application offers a 3-step way to convert your movies between the most popular video formats on the market: AVI, MPEG, WMV, MP4, FLV, MOV; and it is also capable of extracting the audio track and save it as an MP3 file.

Seek bar in the movie preview window lets you adjust the beginning and end of the video and convert only that piece. You are also given the possibility to adapt the settings for audio and video so that they fit your standards.

The Bad We noticed a typo in the initial screen of the application, which, of course, does not affect the conversion process.

The renaming of the output data is a shortcoming we were not expecting. It would have been nice if the application had preserved the name of the input video and not give it a number for a name.

The Truth

WinX Video Converter is free of charge and can be used for as long as you want with no restrictions. Apart from the typo and the naming of the conversion result into number, WinX Video Converter does a fine job. It is reliable and pretty fast on the job, with no hassle at all.

Experienced users have a chance at altering the default values to adapt them to a convenient result, while beginners can leave it all to default. The outcome has good quality but it depends heavily on the input.

Here are some snapshots of the application in action:

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user interface 5
features 5
ease of use 5
pricing / value 5


final rating 5
Editor's review
excellent
 
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