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How-To: Convert WMV to MOV for playback in iTunes [Windows]

Posted in AV, Entertainment, Howto, Tech by Derek at 11:00 am

We received a few requests concerning our tutorials for downloading music videos from Yahoo! Launch [How-To: Downloading Yahoo! Music Videos with Firefox & VLC], I decided it would only be appropriate to throw together a tutorial for importing said videos into iTunes.

Unfortunately, there are no open source [read: "free"] options for converting WMV video files into MOV files on Windows. OSX users can follow our simple tutorial here: How-To: Play WMV files in iTunes. The only option Windows users have is to utilize shareware or paid programs. These utilites can range in cost from $20 - $50. They’re not “free”. Cough, cough. Be resourceful. Keep in mind that most conversion software does include a demo period.

For this short tutorial I chose to utilize Video Cleaner Pro and Quicktime 7 Pro.

Step 1: Assuming you’ve downloaded a WMV video of your choice [read tutorial above], open Video Cleaner Pro and select the ‘Add+’ button. Select your WMV file and select ‘Open’. At the bottom of the window you’ll notice output format, video settings, audio settings, and output directory. The default settings can be left alone. The main settings to change are the output format [choose AVI] and output directory [choose the directory of your choice]. Select the ‘Convert >>’ button and wait for Video Cleaner to convert your WMV file into an AVI file.

Step 2: Next, open Quicktime Pro and select ‘File > Open File’ and locate your WMV file. Once your video opens, play the file to check for video quality. The converted file obviously falls short of being HD quality. After verifying the video, select ‘File > Export’. Default settings (Movie to Quicktime Move) can be left alone. Select ‘Save’ and wait for Quicktime to convert the large AVI file into a more manageable MOV file (~100MB). The export may take some time depending on your system specs.

Step 3: Import the newly converted file into iTunes, tag appropriately, and enjoy! Time to make use of that new Video section in iTunes 6 eh?

iPod Video users: If you plan on viewing your Yahoo! music videos on your iPod, utilize Quicktime 7 PRO to export to an iPod friendly format before importing into iTunes 6. In the export options drop down menu, select ‘Movie to iPod (320×240)’ before clicking ‘Save’. The resulting movie can then be imported into iTunes and on to your shiny new iPod video player.

32 Comments, Comment or Trackback

  1. Dylan

    Yes but, I beleive that the higher quality wmvs wont do so well being converted to avi, them to mov, beacuse mine isnt working all that well, converting avi to mov took around 5 hours, and the video is choppy, jumpy, and slow. the audio is perfect though…

    Oct 17th, 2005

  2. Derek

    5 hours? It took about 30 mins total to convert from the high WMV to AVI to M4V.

    Of course your machine specs will affect the conversion times. I haven’t noticed any choppiness whatsoever.

    Oct 17th, 2005

  3. Dylan

    Computer:
    Operating System Microsoft Windows XP Professional
    OS Service Pack Service Pack 2
    Internet Explorer 6.0.2900.2180 (IE 6.0 SP2)
    DirectX 4.09.00.0904 (DirectX 9.0c)
    Computer Name INFERNOTRON
    User Name Locke

    Motherboard:
    CPU Type AMD Athlon XP, 1200 MHz (12 x 100)
    Motherboard Name PCChips M810LR (2 PCI, 1 AGP, 1 AMR, 2 DIMM, Audio, Video, LAN)
    Motherboard Chipset SiS 730S
    System Memory 320 MB (SDRAM)
    BIOS Type AMI (09/13/02)
    Communication Port ECP Printer Port (LPT1)

    Display:
    Video Adapter SiS 630/730 (64 MB)
    3D Accelerator SiS 300 Integrated
    Monitor Plug and Play Monitor [NoDB] (124028933)

    Multimedia:
    Audio Adapter SiS 7018 Audio Accelerator

    Storage:
    IDE Controller SiS PCI IDE Controller
    Floppy Drive Floppy disk drive
    Disk Drive Maxtor 6E030L0 (30 GB, 7200 RPM, Ultra-ATA/133)
    Optical Drive DVD-ROM
    SMART Hard Disks Status OK

    Partitions:
    C: (NTFS) 29313 MB (16862 MB free)

    Input:
    Keyboard Standard 101/102-Key or Microsoft Natural PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse Microsoft PS/2 Mouse

    Network:
    Network Adapter SiS 900 PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter (24.254.33.147)
    Modem HSP56 MR

    Peripherals:
    Printer hp deskjet 3820 series
    USB1 Controller SiS 7001 PCI-USB Open Host Controller
    USB1 Controller SiS 7001 PCI-USB Open Host Controller

    I think thats pretty good, but its only the converted vid’s that play choppy, all other vid’s play perfect…

    Oct 17th, 2005

  4. Dylan

    I found that its a problem with Quicktime playing the movie. VLC plays it just fine. . .

    Oct 18th, 2005

  5. madhu

    still better use flip4mac codec and open it in qtime and convert it to whatever ipod supports or try using the export to ipod automator plugin form automator.us

    Oct 19th, 2005

  6. Dylan

    Found Problem. QT was converting it to h.264 and my vidcard can’t handle it. I’ve got it working now, Thanks Guys!

    Oct 19th, 2005

  7. Lou-Dizzle

    I love it thank.. Just one thing though. The file is still 100 or more MB’s is there a way i can still convert it or compress it so that its only round 20mb like itunes format?

    Nov 2nd, 2005

  8. Lou-Dizzle

    I figured it out just choose Movie to ipod option in quicktime pro. Hey thanks for all this info :)

    Nov 2nd, 2005

  9. Justin

    Here’s a faster way I convert wmvs:

    (1) First download STOIK Video Converter. It comes with a fully functional 15-day trial (except for video editing, which isn’t really needed).

    (2) Open a wmv (or mov: that works too) in the input box and choose a folder and file name in the output box, like C:\My Movie.avi

    In the output format, use DV AVI file (PAL) setting, or a different one if you know what you’re doing.

    Now click Record at the bottom and wait until complete.

    (3) Open Videora iPod Converter and click transcode new and find your file e.g. C:\My Movie.avi (or just click one-click transcode).

    Once done, navigate to the folder in which it saves your transcoded videos (Check under the Settings > Settings tab) and drag it to your itunes library.

    Nov 3rd, 2005

  10. Tim

    I think you just go straight from wmv to mov using the mov booster pack from River Past..

    http://www.riverpast.com/en/boosters/mov/index.php

    Sounds more convenient.

    Nov 13th, 2005

  11. Kyle

    xilisoft will go from wmv to mp4 and not get owned by quicktime pros bullshit! its only 35 dollars and encodes 5-6 times faster with great results, and its easy to cough cough stumble upon a free copy of. _>

    Nov 27th, 2005

  12. Jonny Ward

    I use limewire to download movies to go on my ipod video. when i try to transfer them all onto itunes only some of them are transferred. there seems to be no reason that i can find for this. i have downloaded avi movies that won’t import onto itunes and others that will. is there any way to get all of my videos onto itunes

    Dec 31st, 2005

  13. StuDog

    I know this is a little late, but I’ve found a quick workable way to convert wmv to mpg. I use mpg mostly with my videos. I’m sure mov is great and all, but the sizes are astronomical. The wmv’s are usually around 15mb and the mpg’s convert to about 30mb. If anyone wants to give it a try, it’s free and is called TMPGenc.

    http://www.tmpgenc.net

    too bad it only works with windows. anyway, the process is pretty cut and dry, and I’ve had no audio-sync problems at all. And I’ve converted some 50 videos already.

    Jan 5th, 2006

  14. Eric

    I got Xilisoft DVD to iPod Suite 2.1.55 for whomever would like it.
    It is perfect for converting any file to an iPod compatible video file. Includes full tutorial. E-mail at doomed2010@gmail.com if your interested.

    Jan 10th, 2006

  15. Adam

    I was able to just load the wmv file right into Videora Ipod Converter and it converted it to an mp4 just fine.

    Jan 21st, 2006

  16. linda

    I need to download video clips for power point presentation at the unicersity. I have real player only and sometimes it says that the video is copy right and is unable to download. Where can I pay the fees to make videos accesible.

    Feb 20th, 2006

  17. David in the UK

    You people go to jodix.com
    they have what you people are looking for (and it works(and it is free))

    Feb 23rd, 2006

  18. Stacy

    nice… http://www.jodix.com is a good place to get a program for converting…

    no popups n stuff at all

    easy use

    no spyware as far as i can see… i checked for any hidden downloaded programs… absolutely none

    Thanks, David in the UK : ]

    Feb 28th, 2006

  19. ilyasemre

    avril lavinge he wasn’t

    Aug 24th, 2006

  20. brad

    hi, i have the 5th generation ipod video and i dont know how to convert my limewire videos onto my ipod.

    Sep 21st, 2006

  21. mike

    vlc can be used to convert wmv to mov for free…

    Sep 25th, 2006

  22. laxinboi

    There is a free “…to MP4″ video converter, called Videora.

    http://www.videora.com/en-us/Converter/iPod/

    Works perfectly, been using it for months.

    Oct 3rd, 2006

  23. Jhon

    I cant get the movie to go on iTunes so I can put them on my ipod video

    Jan 28th, 2007

  24. Dorin Ionescu

    I bought Quick Time Pro and can not open WMV files ? - error 2048
    ????????????????????????????????????????????????????

    Mar 20th, 2007

  25. Dorin Ionescu

    I found the answer - at step 2 change with . Quicktime can not convert WMV (licence between big competitors …) so you need a WMV2AVI convertor (I used because it is free (you pay for edit only)) but I may test Video Cleaner Pro one day

    Thank you for instructions
    Dorin

    Mar 21st, 2007

  26. Dorin Ionescu

    (resubmitted becouse I used lt ant gt characters and it was a mess)
    Dorin Ionescu March 21st, 2007 - 6:42 am
    I found the answer - at step 2 change [locate your WMV file] with [locate your AVI file]. Quicktime can not convert WMV (licence between big competitors …) so you need a WMV2AVI convertor (I used because it is free (you pay for edit only)) but I may test Video Cleaner Pro one day

    Thank you for instructions
    Dorin

    Mar 21st, 2007

  27. Dorin Ionescu

    (resubmitted again becouse I used lt ant gt characters and it was a mess - your software [eat] html tags between lt and gt)
    Dorin Ionescu March 21st, 2007 - 6:42 am
    I found the answer - at step 2 change [locate your WMV file] with [locate your AVI file]. Quicktime can not convert WMV (licence between big competitors …) so you need a WMV2AVI convertor (I used [STOIK Imaging] because it is free (you pay for edit only)) but I may test Video Cleaner Pro one day

    Thank you for instructions
    Dorin

    Mar 21st, 2007

  28. Bob

    One step solution with no hassles — have a look at iSquint.

    http://www.isquint.org/

    Sep 18th, 2007

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