How to Copy DVD to USB Flash Drive on Mac & Windows Easily?
Summary: Copying DVDs to USB drive offers a hassle-free way to preserve your collection or enjoy movies, videos, or critical data on-the-go without carrying bulky discs. Here, we’ll show you how to copy DVD to flash drive on Win and Mac, as well as how to transfer DVD content via offline services without a computer.
Table of Contents
As modern laptops and PCs phase out their built-in DVD drives, users from forums like Microsoft, Quora, and Apple Discussions are looking for ways to transfer their DVD collections to USB flash drives. Whether it's converting homemade films for easy access or finding a way to watch DVDs on a TV via USB, the demand for convenient solutions is growing. Users are also curious about how to transfer DVD without drive, how to bypass copy protection, and which formats work best for playback on various devices.
Luckily, there are several free and efficient solutions available. In this guide, we'll show you step by step how to copy DVDs to a USB - whether you have a computer or need an alternative approach.
How to Copy DVD to USB Flash Drive Directly?
There’s a simple copy-and-paste method for transferring DVDs without copy protection, like homemade DVDs, to a USB flash drive. The requirement is a DVD drive on your laptop, or an external DVD drive that can run your DVDs, and a USB flash drive. However, keep in mind that this method may not result in files playable on mobile players.
Step 1: Insert the DVD into your laptop or an external DVD drive. Plug the USB flash drive into any available USB port.
Step 2: Access the DVD Drive on your computer. Then browse the files and select all or the specific contents you want to copy. This could include ISO images, VIDEO_TS folders, or other DVD-related files.
Step 3: Open the USB stick in your file explorer and paste the selected files onto the drive. The process for copying a CD to a flash drive is the same as the steps above.
How to Copy a DVD to a Flash Drive with the Best DVD Ripper
For the question of "How do I transfer DVD movies to a USB flash memory stick" on Reddit, there are recommendations like Handbrake, MakeMKV, and VLC. However, it's crucial to note that Handbrake and VLC intrinsically do not support ripping DVDs that bear copy protections. While MakeMKV does support protections like AACS, CSS, and region codes, it falls short for some higher level protections and exclusively supports the MKV output format.
Thus, if you need a more powerful tool that supports most copy protections, even for the latest discs, and demands a wider range of output formats, we recommend DVDFab DVD Ripper. This is a professional DVD to USB converter tool for Windows 10/11/8.1/8/7 and macOS 10.10 - 14.x with advanced DVD ripping featrues and user-friendly interface.
Features of this best DVD to USB converter:
- Supports encrypted DVDs powered by APS, CSS, RC, RCE, DADC, Sony ArccOS, CPRM, Disney X-Project, and more
- Rip DVD to 260+ preset output devices such as iPhone, Samsung, Huawei
- Edit videos with tools and enhance video quality via advanced settings
- GPU hardware acceleration allows for batch conversions at fast speeds
- Convert DVD Subtitles to SRT file render subtitles directly into video
- Convert DVD video to 4K HDR10 MP4 or MKV format on Windows
How to Transfer DVD to USB with DVDFab DVD Ripper on Windows and Mac?
Before starting the DVD-to-USB process, ensure you have a compatible CD/DVD drive. If you are using an external DVD drive (such as PeroBuno), make sure it has these features:
- Be versatile enough to act as a CD DVD player/reader/burner/recorder
- Check if the drive is suitable for your OS (Windows or macOS)
- Look for a drive with fast reading speed to save time during ripping process
Once your drive is ready, just follow the detailed steps below:
Step 1: Download and install DVDFab 13 software on your computer.
Step 2: Open DVDFab 13 and opt for the Ripper module. Insert the DVD into the drive, then let DVDFab access the disc from your drive automatically.
Step 3: Navigate to the profile library via the "Choose Other Profile" option. There are two ways to select the output format. One is to click "Format" to choose your preferred video format.
💡Here, we recommend you to convert DVD to MP4 as it's a more general format with wide compatibility, excellent quality, and small file size.
Moreover, if you want to copy DVD to USB to play on your TV but are unsure about the format, you can click "Device" and select the TV brand, such as LG, Samsung, PS5/4, Xbox One, etc. DVDFab will automatically match the most appropriate output format for you.
Step 4: Optionally, you can customize DVD video by adjusting the video resolution or adding external subtitles. And the built-in DVD editing software allows you to crop, trim, merge video, add watermarks and subtitles, and even adjust video color.
Step 5: Click on the "Folder" button at the selection box to set your USB flash drive as the output destination. Finally, click "Start" to begin copying and transferring the DVD to your USB drive.
How to Convert DVD to Flash Drive with Free Converter
If you are trying to rip homemade DVDs and don't need a lot of advanced settings, then the free DVD to USB Converter will suffice. As a powerful and open source program, HandBrake is a popular choice for many users. HandBrake supports converting DVDs and video files to MP4, MKV and WebM, simplifying the process of transferring DVDs to USB drives and enabling users to access them on different devices without the need for a physical disc.
Features of HandBrake:
- Equipped with batch encoding and video preview to improve conversion efficiency
- Built-in presets make it easy to optimize video files for specific devices
- Supports a wide range of customizable settings, such as adjusting frame rate, subtitle, and bitrate
- Available for macOS, Windows and Linux and is regularly updated by the community
Cons of HandBrake:
- To handle encrypted DVDs, you'll need add-ons like libdvdcss, which complicates the process
- Despite the simplicity of the interface, its advanced settings can be overwhelming for new users
How to rip DVD to USB with HandBrake DVD to USB converter?
Step 1: Get the HandBrake and install it
- If your DVD is encrypted, you can install libdvdcss on Windows by putting the libdvdcss.dll file in the HandBrake installation directory.
- For Mac users, libdvdcss can be installed with Homebrew using the command brew install libdvdcss.
Step 2: Click Open Source in HandBrake and select the DVD drive. When loading is done, HandBrake displays a list of titles on the DVD, use the drop-down menu to select the title you want to rip.
Step 3: In the Presets panel, select an output format and preset that matches the desired quality and device. MP4 is usually the more compatible format. You can also adjust options for quality, resolution, audio tracks, etc.
Step 4: Click Start Encode to begin the ripping process. Finally, drag the converted files to the USB drive.
How to Transfer DVD to USB without Computer
Transferring DVD to USB using a DVD ripper software is quite straightforward. But what if you don't have access to a computer or prefer an offline method?
Luckily, there are standalone devices and services that can help you transfer DVD to USB without computer. Here's a table of three offline DVD to USB Transfer Services next. These services offer convenience by doing all the work for you - from extracting content from DVDs to transferring them onto a USB stick.
| CVS Photo | Forever Studios CD&DVD_Transfer | Walmart Photo | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accepted Media | YesDVD, CVS YesDVD, DVD, CD, VCD, MiniDVD | DVD, CD, Data & Mini Disks, SD/CF/Micro cards, USB drives | YesDVD, Walmart DVD, DVD, VCD, CVCD |
| What You Get | DVD/Blu-ray/USB + digital copy in MemoryCloud (60 days access) | Forever Safe USB or Cloud link or DVD set | Digital copy in MemoryCloud (60 days access) + optional DVDs/USBs |
| Price | $25.99/DVD (90 mins); $33.99/Blu-ray (90 mins); $34.99/USB | $15/DVD digitizing service and additional $29 per USB drive | $12.96 for first 30 min digital copy; extra: $3.96/DVD,$12.96/USB |
| How It Works | Create order->Bring media->Wait->Receive copies | Enter quantity->Send media->Wait->Receive copies | Create order online -> send media -> wait -> receive copies |
| Note | Please note that DVD to USB transfer services may not be available at all Walmart Photo, CVS Photo, or Forever Studios locations. Pricing and turnaround time can also vary. For specific details, contact your local store or studio directly. | ||
FAQs about Copying DVD to USB Drive
How to copy DVD to USB with VLC?
VLC can be used to convert and play non-encrypted discs, following the steps below:
- Step 1: Open this free DVD to USB converter and tap the Convert/Save button and set the output format for the DVD rip.
- Step 2: Click the Profile menu and select the format you wish.
- Step 3: In the Destination category, tap Browse and choose a folder for the DVD converted video file and give a name to the output file。
- Step 4: Lastly, tap the Start option to begin the ripping process.
To copy a DVD to a USB for playback on your TV, you need to first check which video formats are supported by your specific TV model. Some common formats include H.264 (.m4v, .mp4, .mov) for Apple TVs; H.264/HEVC (MP4, MOV, M4V, MKV) and VP9 (WebM) for Roku TVs; MP4, MPEG, WMV, MTS for Sony TVs; and AVI, MKV, MP4 and MOV among others for Samsung TVs.
Then you can use free DVD Ripper to rip your DVD to any of the formats in USB based on your TV model. You can also go to "Choose Other Profile" windows to select "Devices" where you can find some TV output presets.
The capacity of the USB flash drive you need to store your DVD collection depends on the size of each movie. A standard single-layer DVD can hold up to 4.7 GB, while a dual-layer DVD can store up to 8.5 GB.
If we assume that most movies are around 2 hours long and encoded with good quality at about 1-2GB per movie, a 128GB USB flash drive could hold approximately between 64 and 128 movies. However, this is an estimate; actual storage may vary based upon the specific file sizes.
As for format, it depends on what device you plan on using to play these files:
- FAT32: This is compatible with almost all systems but has a file size limit of only 4GB.
- NTFS: Works well with Windows systems and supports large files but might not work perfectly with other operating systems like macOS without additional software.
- exFAT: This works well across both Windows and macOS systems and supports large files as well.
So if you're planning on storing full DVDs (as ISOs or Video_TS folders) which are larger than 4GB in size, then choosing NTFS or exFAT would be better options than FAT32.
Why the transferred DVD files can't be played on TV?
Some TVs do not support DVD file structures (VIDEO_TS folders, ISO files or VOB files). Please use DVDFab DVD Ripper to convert DVD to MP4, MKV or AVI for better compatibility. Then check the formats supported by your TV and select the correct one using DVDFab's Device profile.
Why does it take a long time to transfer DVD movies to USB?
Check if you have enabled GPU acceleration in the settings of the third party software. Make sure your computer has enough available memory and CPU to handle the ripping process efficiently. Also, check the disc. Scratched or damaged DVDs may take longer to read.
Final Words
As optical drives become less common in modern laptops, transferring DVDs to USB offers a practical way to access media. While there are free tools and offline services available, professional DVD rippers such as DVDFab offer the best balance of speed, flexibility and advanced customization. With the right settings, saving DVDs to flash drives will be a straightforward process.
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