m3u8x

The M3U8 files are UTF-8 encoded audio playlists that multimedia players use to reveal where the media files are located. Links ending in M3U8 are in fact live streaming URLs that point to various videos. Your video player might preload the files or download them one by one, but grabbing them yourself for offline use requires a dedicated tool such as m3u8x.

This particular application can download the videos an M3U8 playlist points to and save them on your computer so you can watch them offline.

No installation is required, which is a plus. The interface of m3u8x might seem a bit empty at first, but as you download videos, you will notice that the right panel fills up with the links and the progress of each operation.

All the options are placed in a single window, but having built-in tips would be better for new users.

To download a video, you must paste the M3U8 URL into the designated field. The application enables you to customize the name of the output and select its quality, or just paste the quality URL.

Additional options enable you to select between MP4 and TS as the video format and convert the audio codec. You can configure m3u8x to download content between two different moments in time. Once a video is downloaded, you can watch it using the built-in player.

m3u8x also comes with a video joiner and converter for TS videos, MP3 and AAC files, and TXT parts. The Join/Convert tool can output data in MP4, TS, MKV, and MP3 format.

m3u8x comes in handy if you want to download content from a website that supports M3U8 playlists. Although its interface might seem a bit unpolished and it could use a guide to explain all the options, m3u8x manages to carry out its tasks without delay.