by Brian Fisher •
AVI is a wildly popular video container format which can be found virtually anywhere. It's quite easy to play AVI files in Windows, but things are totally different if you're using Mac, even in the latest macOS 10.15 Catalina. The fact is that only a couple of video formats are supported natively on Mac, namely M4V, MP4 and MOV. To play AVI video, you have to install third party codecs. The direct solution to this AVI problem is to install a Mac player that can decode AVI videos. But that has its own limitations. Apple products are inherently incapable of playing AVI files. With an AVI video player, you will be able to play AVI video on your Mac without problem. However, the problem will come back to haunt you when you transfer these AVI files to mobile devices like iPhone X/8/8 Plus/7/7 Plus/6s Plus/6s, iPod shuffle, iPad Pro, and iTouch.
So, the best choice is to get an AVI video converter and convert all AVI files into Mac-compatible formats. Here UniConverter is humbly recommended. It's a specially desired AVI converter for Mac that not only allows you convert AVI to Mac-friendly video format, but lets you directly convert AVI to play on iPhone, iPod, iPad, PSP, Android phones, etc. Will you be giving it a try?
Get the Best AVI Video Converter:
After locating AVI files in the Finder, drag and drag them to the program interface. Alternatively, open the built-in Media Browser and locate AVI files in the frequently used folders. Or use "Add Files" button to browse and load AVI files in the popup dialog.
Tips: This AVI converter for Mac supports batch conversion, you can import multiple AVI files on Mac, hold down the "Command" or "Shift" key and click on the AVI files one by one. You can also use your mouse to click and drag to select multiple files.
The next step is to choose an output format for AVI files. More than 150 output formats are provided, including all popular mobile devices. It's easy to do this. Just go the Format tray and click an output format you want from Video tab or Device tab directly. In each output format, select the desired resolution and click the Setting icon beside if you want to change more encode settings like frame rate, bit rate, encoder, etc.
The iPhone, iPod, iPad, PSP, Xbox 360, Android Generic and other device presets locate in the Device category. If you want to play AVI on these devices, you can simply choose the preset. No need to change video settings manually.
At last, hit the "Convert" button to start AVI conversion. If you have imported more than 1 video, tap the "Convert All" button to convert them one by one automatically. The required time depends on the AVI video length. Usually only a few minutes are required. You'll get a prompt message when complete. You can then choose to open the "Output" folder or just click "OK".
Aiseesoft AVI Converter for Mac is an efficient and effective tool in converting any video files. It supports multiple conversions and has an easy to use interface. You just need to add the files for conversion and choose an output format. Then click “Convert” to complete the conversion. Even though this application costs more, it is a versatile program which enables you to convert any video format efficiently with zero quality loss. It supports various file formats like MPEG, DAT, MP4, MTS, FLV, AVI, DivX, MPV and many more. This program is known for its super speedy conversions and other features. You could adjust the output format with its editing features such as crop, trim, watermark and combine videos.
Pros:
Supports several formats.
You can set video encoder, audio sample rate, video/audio bitrate, frame rate and resolution.
Cons:
Pop-up window which asks you to buy full version of this software. The cost of its Full version is $45.
Bigasoft AVI Converter for Mac is a professional video converting tool which allows you to convert any video file into any output format. It supports several file formats such as AVI, Xvid, ASF, WMV, MKV, VOB, MOD, RMVB, TOD, AVCHD, MP4, , RM and several other formats. It converts any file with excellent output quality. You can preview the video before conversion, combine several videos, watermark, take screenshots, trim and add several other special effects. It also supports YouTube video downloads. You could also convert the videos to Apple iPhone 5, iPad 3 and iPad Mini. It is fully compatible with macOS 10.10.
Pros:
Unique editing features to adjust and enhance the video quality.
Filter and Preview options.
Cons:
Slow conversions and Time-Consuming.
Cisdem AVI Converter has many attractive features which makes it a powerful tool for video conversions. You can extract soundtracks from video files and rip DVD movies. You could download videos from various video sharing websites like YouTube, Dailymotion, Vimeo, Yahoo, Metacafe and several other sites. It provides video editing options such as crop, trim, rotate, watermark, subtitle (.srt), supports 3D videos and many more options.
Pros:
Extracts soundtracks from videos.
Supports video downloads from various video-sharing websites.
Creates subtitle with .srt file.
Cons:
Time consuming during file conversions.
Wondershare Video Converter provides quick and easy conversion of AVI file formats. It has an in-built video editor, DVD burner, media player and several other features. It provides 30X faster conversion of files with zero quality loss. It also enables file transfers to your Android and Apple devices with its Wireless transfer software. This converter is popular due to its powerful and excellent editing features. It supports many file formats and portable devices too. You could also download online videos with ease. You could either save them on your computer or convert them for playback on your desired portable device. It automatically converts videos whenever needed. You could also download YouTube subtitles and audios from YouTube videos directly.
Pros:
In-Built Video Editor.
DVD Burner.
Supports several file formats and portable devices.
Cons:
Issues with DVD Burning.
Sometimes merging of multiple videos may not work.
See? It's easy to fix the AVI compatibility problem. An alternative option is to install media players that can directly playback AVI files. One of the best media players on Mac is VLC, a popular open source media player on Mac. This well-known media player can play a wide array of media formats including AVI, MKV, MOV and so on. Different from media player, if you prefer QuickTime player to other players, you can also install a QuickTime plugin called Perian, which is also free and open sourced. Unfortunately, this open source program is no longer in active development and you may encounter problems when using it with the latest Mac OS. Also, older version QuickTime doesn't work with it, and you will need to have the latest QuickTime installed on your Mac. Otherwise you will be unable to install it.
All in all, an AVI converter is the easy way to go and the other 2 options require some technical know-how on part of the users. And if you feel you are not equipped with the required knowledge to install them successfully, you will be better off sticking to the first recommendation.
To convert AVI videos in Windows PCs, download the Windows version - UniConverter for Windows.
Apart from converting AVI to MOV and WMV formats, iSkysoft AVI converter software can also convert video between a broad range of other media formats. All major Mac and Windows operating systems are supported, like Sierra/El Capitan/Yosemite/Mavericks/Mountain Lion/Lion/Snow Leopard and Windows 10/8/7/Vista/XP. Try it youself now!
Brian Fisher
staff Editor