What Format of Video Files Can QuickTime Player Open? QuickTime Player supports multiple file formats. Some of them include MPEG-4 files (MP4, MP3, M4V, M4A), QuickTime movie files (MOV), DV Stream, MPEG-2, Mjpeg, AVI, and even some audio files such as AIFF, WAV, and AAC. The file format was developed by Apple as was QuickTime Player, it is compatible with both the Microsoft and MacOS platforms. MOV files are capable of storing two or more tracks which can be video, audio, text, graphics or effects.
- Officially, QuickTime only natively plays AVI files encoded with Motion JPEG; QuickTime won't play AVI videos encoded with DivX, XviD, WMV and other video codecs. Though we can make QuickTime play more AVI types by installing Perian component, this only works on QuickTime with Mac OS X Snow Leopard or lower version, and it does work on.
- Pretty good all around player, and directly interfaces into the QT player so you can open.avi files in the QT player with the extra QT component. It won't work on all.avi files, though. It's probably always good to have a few different options though - I personally have three different decoders that are QT components (/Library/Quicktime).
To play AVI files on Macs, we need to get a clear knowledge of the AVI format and its feature, and then choose the best video player to play AVI movies smoothly.
AVI, Audio Video Interleaved, is a multimedia container format introduced by Microsoft as part of its Video for Windows software. To open AVI files, your player must support all of these codecs. But Mac's built-in video player - QuickTime is unable to recognize and play AVI files. This article would introduce the best AVI player for Mac, and show you the step-by-step guide on how to play AVI on Mac.
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- >> How to Play AVI on Macs with the Best Video Player
- >> How to Play AVI Files on Macs Using QuickTime
- >> Recommend More AVI Players for Mac
How to Play AVI on Mac with the Best AVI Player?
Cisdem Video Player is a 100% FREE AVI player for Mac to play video / audio files of more than 50 formats (including 4K/5K/1080p HD videos) with no codec packs needed, like WMV, AVI, ASF, 3GP, MPG, MP4, M2T, MOV, MP3, OGG, and all popular HD video formats, etc.
It offers lots personalized video playing features, like load subtitle files automatically and manually, take snapshots, De-interlacing, set soundtracks, etc. All images are displayed clearly and crisply. It lets you enjoy smooth video playing without any bugs and artifacts. Every image, every action, still or moving, is delicately displayed. In all, it is absolutely one of the best AVI players for Mac that you shouldn’t miss out.
Steps to play AVI on Mac with Cisdem Video Player
Step 1. Download and launch the freeware.
Step 2. Drag AVI movie to the software
Open the software. You can see a pretty crisp and elegant interface. Drag any format video directly from your movie folder to the app.
Step 3. Open AVI file on Mac
Click the play button, and start to watch your AVI movie imported.
If you want to watch another one when playing one movie with this video player, you can drag the second one to replace the first one and start your new watching.
Look at the toolbar on the top menu. There are many practical tools in this professional AVI player that can be used for some personalized settings.
1. In the 'Audio' or , you can choose the stereo from Mono, Stereo, Left Channel, Right Channel.
Quicktime Player Won't Play Avi Files
2. Use its feature of 'Subtitle' and add external subtitles in .ASS, .SRT format and in the language you are familiar with.
3. Control the 'Playback' progress, stop, step forward, step backward, take screenshots, etc.
4. Retain file open recently and playback at your will.
5. Click “Window” or the sign at right top corner of the screen to check the media info of the loaded video.
6. Click to take a snapshot of your favorite video visual image as save as wallpaper or poster.
7. This free AVI player Mac enables you to make the video screen to the biggest ratio. You can just drag its corner to the bigger screen size, or go to click 'Playback' > 'Full Screen'.
8. In-app purchase: It needs to pay $9.99 to unlock the conversion function. So you can convert AVI to MP4, M4V, MKV, iPhone, and more.
A Professional Video Converter: Easily Convert, Download & Rip Videos
Use the best AVI converter for Mac to:
- Convert videos up to 200+ formats, including AVI, MOV, M4V, FLV, MKV, etc.
- Edit AVI videos with a built-in tool, like Trim, Crop, Rotate, 3D Effects, Watermark, Subtitles, etc.
- Rip DVD movies to AVI, MP4 or other formats for playing on portable devices
- Merge all converted AVI videos into a large file
- Download online videos from 1000+ sites with the supplied media downloader
How to Play AVI Files on Macs Using QuickTime Player?
QuickTime, a popular multimedia technology with a built-in media player, lets you play and view Internet video, HD movie trailers, and personal media in a wide range of file formats. But QuickTime Player only natively plays AVI (Motion JPEG), not all .avi movies.
In this case, you can install a plug-in like Perian, which is a free open-source QuickTime component that enables your Mac to play almost any movie format including AVI files. So you can open AVI files on Mac as easily as it does the native QuickTime video format.
Note: The latest version 1.2.3 of Perian is not compatible with Mac OS X Mavericks (10.9), Mountain Lion (10.8), and Lion (10.7). Moreover, since QuickTime version 10, Perian has no longer been supported.
Steps to play AVI on Mac OS X 10.4.7 or higher via QuickTime (10 or later not included):
Step 1. Download and install Perian from https://perian.org/.
After installation, it will be listed inside System Preferences, not the Applications folder, as it's a preference pane.
Step 2. Right-click the AVI file, and open it with QuickTime Player.
To uninstall Perian, navigate to 'System Preferences', right-click on the Perian icon and simply click the Remove “Perian” Preference Pane command.
Another way is to use the 3ivx MPEG-4 codec.
QuickTime 6 or 7 can open 3ivx MPEG-4 encoded videos including 3ivx AVI files without installing Perian or other components.
If the above method is not compatible with your QuickTime or Mac, and you still rely on QuickTime, I advise you to convert AVI to other formats that QuickTime supported, like .mov, .mp4, .m4v, MPEG-1, 3GPP, 3GPP2, AVCHD, DV, etc.
Recommend More AVI Players for Mac
#1. VLC
VLC is a free video player for you to play AVI on Mac. It supports playing multiple media formats. You are able to add subtitles to your video files, set the audio and video’s preferences as well, and easily control the playing process. But it comes with a basic interface, less awesome video visual effect, and less intuitive.
Just launch the application and, in the resulting VLC media player window, drag in the movie you want to watch and it will start playing.
#2. Plex
Plex is an excellent AVI player for Mac that helps you play and manage AVI without glitch. This program optimizes playback of nearly any type of media file, like AVI, MP4, FLV, WMV, etc., and streams all of your media to all your devices anytime and anywhere. Meanwhile, Plex has a media server so you can save your AVI videos into the service. But the operation of it is a bit difficult for beginners who only want to play AVI files on Mac.
#3. Elmedia Player
Elmedia Player applied hardware acceleration technology capable of playing AVI in a softer manner. You can load all AVI files in a playlist, adjust their playback speed, and audio/subtitles delay. But most functions of this AVI player for Mac are not free, such as customizing video tuner/advanced streaming/audio settings, etc. and even capturing a screenshot.
Quicktime Player Avi Files Converter
Conclusion
After reading this article, you should know how to play AVI on Mac. The best free media player you can try is Cisdem Video Player. It comes with a more intuitive interface and lets you enjoy a more crisp and higher definition video visual effect. You can easily take snapshots, resume media files, and control the play process. Do you like this outstanding AVI player Mac? Come to download its free trial version and experience your AVI HD movies.
Playing AVI and DivX files
This chapter from our book Troubleshooting Mac® OS X discusses why some Audio Video Interleaved (AVI) multimedia files do not play in QuickTime and provides methods for playing AVIs on Mac OS X.
About AVIs
There has been confusion over AVI files since QuickTime® added support for such. AVI is a media container very similar to QuickTime, but with a unique data format. AVI was originally called Video for Windows® (VFW) and QuickTime supports the VFW format.
However, most, if not all AVI playback issues arise with movies that have been compressed using CODECs (Compressor - Decompressor) that are unavailable for QuickTime in Mac OS X. In particular, the Indeo® CODEC, popular for video compression on PCs, has not been ported to Mac OS X.
To further confuse the issue, many DivX®-encoded files carry the .avi extension. QuickTime does not include native DivX support, even though QuickTime 6 and later support the ISO Standard MPEG-4 media compression format and DivX is based on the MPEG-4 standard.
QuickTime X and AVIs
Under Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard®, QuickTime Player — aka QuickTime X — does not support third-party components, i.e. QuickTime plug-ins. Nevertheless, Snow Leopard includes QuickTime Player 7 as an optional install: QuickTime X will invoke QuickTime Player 7 to play videos supported by the latter or by QuickTime Player 7 components.
If you have an existing QuickTime Pro key, QuickTime Player 7 is installed automatically and Pro functionality is available in QuickTime Player 7. If you elect not to install QuickTime Player 7, it can be installed later. Likewise, if you attempt to open a media file that requires QuickTime Player 7, you are offered the opportunity to install it. QuickTime Player 7 is installed in the Macintosh HD > Applications > Utilities folder.
Playing AVIs on Mac OS X
We have found that the following four methods will enable viewing most AVI files that do not play in QuickTime. While none of these methods are foolproof and some AVI files still refuse to play, one of these methods will usually work.
Use VLC
Probably the easiest way to play AVI and DivX files on Mac OS X is to download and install the freeware VLC Media Player for OS X. VLC is also often referred to by its original name, VideoLAN Client.
Install Perian
Perian is an excellent, free, and open source QuickTime component.
Install the 3ivx® D4 CODEC
Download and install the 3ivx MPEG-4 CODEC per the installation instructions in the associated ReadMe file. This CODEC adds support for a variety of DivX and other formats which often carry the .avi extension.
Convert AVIs to QuickTime movies
Can Quicktime Open Avi Files
If all else fails and you are running Mac OS X 10.6 or earlier, it may be possibles to convert the .avi files to QuickTime .mov files using tools from 3ivx.
You will need...
How To Play Avi Files On Quicktime
- QuickTime 6 or later.
- 3ivx MPEG-4 CODEC.
- 3ivx DivX Doctor II.
Procedure
- Download and install 3ivx MPEG-4 CODEC per the installation instructions in the ReadMe file.
- Download and install 3ivx DivX Doctor II, again per its included instructions. Note that the installation instructions specify numerous additional downloads you can get, but we have found them unnecessary in Mac OS X 10.2 or later.
- Drag and drop .avi files onto DivX Doctor II. They will be converted into .mov files and stored on your hard drive at the location you specify.
- While some .avi files fail to convert — again, none of these methods are foolproof — the resulting .mov files generally play flawlessly in QuickTime. This method may also fix problems with the soundtrack on AVIs that do not play properly using only the DivX for Mac CODEC.
Try the DivX for Mac CODEC
Many AVIs can be played in QuickTime by installing the freeware DivX for Mac CODEC. While this plug-in has been continuously improved, the sound in some AVIs will sometimes be either missing or distorted. [1]
Related links
Quicktime Player Avi Files Download
- VideoHelp is an excellent site offering a plethora of information on video formats.
Notes
[1] Both the 3ivx D4 and DivX for Mac CODECs must be installed in the Macintosh HD > Library > QuickTime folder. However, both CODECs can not be in this folder simultaneously and work with QuickTime as they conflict. If you decide to keep both CODECs , you must temporarily disable one while using the other. To do this:
- Quit QuickTime Player.
- Open the Macintosh HD > Library > QuickTime folder.
- Move — click and drag while pressing the Command key — the CODEC you do not want to use to a temporary folder or to your Desktop.
- Open QuickTime Player.