WMV is a compressed video file format that generally uses the ASF container. It is often miswritten as WVM, WMF, AMV, and WMMP, but they are not the same.
The support of WMV has been limited to Windows. You can't open it on Mac with QuickTime, iTunes, iMovie, etc.
Why not change it to MP4? We all know that MP4 is a cross-platform and popular format with a comparable compression rate of WMV.
This article will introduce you to our approach in how to convert WMV to MP4 on Mac.
| WMV | MP4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Windows media video file | MPEG-4 video file (MPEG-4 Part 14) |
| Developed by | Microsoft | Moving Picture Experts Group |
| Container | ASF | MPEG-4 Part 12 |
| Video quality | Contain high-quality video | Better quality than WMV |
| File size | Smaller than MP4 | Small |
| Used by | Apps that are not unique to iOS and DVD players | Almost all media players and devices |
As an all-around WMV to MP4 converter for Mac, Cisdem Video Converter is able to turn videos from wmv1, wmv2, wmv3, wmv3 image, vc1, etc. encoded WMV into MP4 format.
It can convert WMV to h264/h265/mpeg4 MP4 or convert 4k WMV to 4k h264/h265 MP4 (different 4k resolutions involved). In our tests, when using x265 to decompress 1920 × 1080 WMV videos, the outputs save up to 50% better data compression than x264, while 3849 × 2160 videos up to 35%. And they produce the same quality stream.
Besides WMV and MP4, the app supports a vast range of formats, more than 300, including an assortment of preloaded profiles like iPhones, iPad, iMovie, Android, and so on.
Highlighted features:
Step 1. Add WMV files
Drag-n-drop all HD or 4k WMV videos you’d like to convert into the software.
Step 2. Select the output option
Open the "Output Format" pull-down list. Choose target formats from "General Video" or "4K Video", say, “MP4 Video”.
The file size of MP4 is larger than that of WMV. To get a smaller file, you can choose "MP4 HEVC Video" or "MP4 4K HEVC - XXXX (resolution).
Step 3. Set parameters (optional)
Click the 
button nearby the format option to call up the output controls, from where you can re-configure settings or leave them alone.
Step 4. Convert multiple WMV to MP4 on Mac
Before conversion, you can edit WMV videos.
If unnecessary, click the .png)
button located at the lower right side to start changing WMV files to MP4.
VLC is a multi-platform media player. Not only can it view WMV on Mac, but also transcode WMV into MP4 as well as other formats. You have the ability to adjust the encapsulation, video codec, and audio codec.
It pursues quick conversion. The original file will be compressed more, but there is no obvious lack of quality. You can't compress WMV video with h265 (not support), only h264.
However, the conversion from WMV to MP4 on Mac won’t be so smooth. In addition to the loss of audio tracks, there may also be problems such as:
FFmpeg is a bit difficult for beginners to turn WMV into MP4 on Mac, especially batch conversion of WMV files. You have to write scripts for it.
To make things easier, the following describes how to use the command lines to convert a single WMV file to MP4.
You can't remux WMV into MP4 via ffmpeg –i xxx.wmv -codec copy xxx.mp4 or ffmpeg -i xxx.wmv -c:v copy -c:a copy -y xxx.mp4, as WMV and MP4 are not using the same codecs.
To keep the highest quality, you can try: ffmpeg -i xxx.wmv -qscale 0 xxx.mp4. Qscale means the compression level, ranging from 1 to 31. The lower the qscale value, the better the quality.
FreeConvert.com is an outstanding web-based service established in 2011. It's capable of converting videos over 500MB without limits and watermarks (Max file size 1GB. Once exceeds, you need to buy a pro account, which is not cheap). And you can convert up to 5 WMV videos at a time.
When converting WMV to MP4 Mac online with FreeConvert.com, we noticed the shortcomings below:
1) Can iMovie turn WMV into MP4 on Mac?
The short answer is no.
iMovie does not allow importing WMV anyway. Although AVI was also created by Microsoft, as long as it contains iMovie-supported codecs, it can be imported into iMovie.
2) Can MPEG Streamclip convert WMV to MP4 on Mac?
Yes, it’s possible.
MPEG Streamclip is a free and lightweight video converter & player. It supports the formats like VOB, DV, AVI, MPEG-4, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, etc., 4k not included. As for WMV, you should install Flip4Mac. Otherwise, an error message pops up.
However, we don't recommend you use MPEG Streamclip. It's too old and hasn't been upgraded since 2012. For the latest Mac system, its compatibility is poor.
3) Can I transcode WMV file to MP4 through Handbrake?
You can do it, but the x265 transcoding function of Handbrake doesn’t work well. You might get the converted MP4 with large size and not very high quality.
4) How to play WMV on Mac?
You are able to install the component - Flip4Mac for QuickTime, or use other WMV players for Mac, such as Cisdem Video Player, 5KPlayer, VLC, and so forth.
But you can’t play DRM protected WMV on Mac with these media players.
According to the discussion over the best WMV to MP4 converter for Mac, we can make a brief conclusion. VLC and FFmpeg will complicate the conversion. A professional app like Cisdem Video Converter is undoubtedly the most helpful. An online WMV converter is also convenient for conversion, but don’t upload private videos.
Peter has always had great enthusiasm for writing, programming and web development. He likes writing about software and technology, his works are featured on some tech blogs or forums like Tom's Hardware, CNET, etc.
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