AVI to M4V Converter

How to Convert AVI to M4V Online

1. Upload Your AVI File: Drag and drop or click "Add Files" to select.avi files from your computer. DivX, XviD, MPEG-4, Motion JPEG, and uncompressed AVI from old camcorders or early-2000s archives all work. Batch is supported.
2. Pick a Codec and Quality: Default is H.264 — the codec iTunes and Apple TV expect inside an M4V container. Choose H.265 / HEVC for roughly 40% smaller files at the same visual quality (Apple devices since 2017 play it natively), or stay on H.264 for the broadest device coverage including older Apple TV generations and AirPlay receivers. Set a quality preset (Highest → Lowest), target a percentage of the original size or an exact size in MB, or fine-tune with CRF (18 = visually lossless, 23 = default, 28 = smaller).
3. Resize or Trim (Optional): Pick a resolution preset (4K / 1440p / 1080p / 720p / 480p), enter a custom width × height, scale by percentage, or trim using start time + duration in HH:MM:SS.sss format — useful for cutting commercials or dead frames out of an old AVI capture before it lands in your Apple TV library.
4. Convert and Download: Click Convert. Files are uploaded over an encrypted connection, processed on our servers, and deleted automatically after a few hours — no sign-up, no watermark, never shared.

Why Convert AVI to M4V?

AVI is Microsoft's 1992 container format, dominant in the DivX / XviD era and still common in legacy archives, security camera exports, and old camcorder footage. M4V is Apple's library-flavored MPEG-4: same MP4 container under the hood, but the.m4v extension signals to iTunes, the Apple TV app, and TV.app that the file belongs in your media library and can carry Apple-specific metadata (chapter markers, closed captions, multi-track Dolby audio, FairPlay DRM flags). Converting AVI → M4V is how legacy video libraries make it into the Apple ecosystem.

• Importing legacy DVD rips into the Apple TV app — Old AVI rips from the DivX / XviD era won't import into TV.app or play on Apple TV. Re-encoding to H.264 inside an M4V container is the standard route to get them into Home Videos or Movies sections.
• Reviving old camcorder footage on iPhone and iPad — MiniDV camcorders and early digital camcorders often saved straight to AVI. iOS Photos and Files won't open these; M4V with H.264 plays natively on every iPhone and iPad.
• Streaming to Apple TV via Home Sharing — AirPlay receivers and tvOS expect H.264 / HEVC inside an MP4-family container. M4V is the format Apple's own toolchain produces, so the AirPlay handshake is more reliable than with raw.avi (which typically just fails).
• Shrinking inefficient AVI archives — AVI's container overhead and older codecs (DivX, XviD, uncompressed) produce noticeably larger files than modern H.264 or HEVC. Re-encoding to M4V routinely cuts size 40-60% with no perceptible quality loss.
• Adding chapter markers for long recordings — Concert recordings, lectures, and home-video compilations become navigable in TV.app once stored as M4V with chapter metadata. AVI has no standardized chapter support.
• Matching purchased iTunes Store content — If your library is mostly M4V (movies, shows, music videos from the iTunes Store), keeping homemade and ripped content in M4V too keeps the library visually consistent and avoids "unsupported format" warnings on older Apple TV hardware.

AVI vs M4V — Format Comparison

Codec Choice for the M4V Output

Frequently Asked Questions

My AVI file uses DivX / XviD — will it convert to M4V?

Yes. XConvert reads all common AVI codecs including DivX, XviD, MPEG-4 ASP, Motion JPEG, and uncompressed video, and re-encodes the video stream to H.264 or HEVC inside the M4V container. The audio track (MP3, PCM, or AC-3 in most AVI files) is converted to AAC, which is the codec M4V expects.

Will the M4V import into the Apple TV app and iTunes?

Yes — H.264 or HEVC inside an M4V container is exactly what TV.app, the legacy iTunes app on Windows, and the Music app on Mac (for music videos) expect. Drop the converted file into the appropriate library folder or drag it onto the app and it appears under Home Videos or Movies depending on your library settings.

Should I pick H.264 or H.265 / HEVC for my M4V?

Pick H.264 if you want the file to play on every Apple device ever made, including original Apple TV (1st-3rd gen) and older iPads. Pick H.265 / HEVC if your devices are from 2017 or later (iPhone 7 / iPad Pro 2017+ / Apple TV 4K) — files are roughly 40% smaller at the same visual quality, which matters for 4K library content and iCloud Drive storage.

Why convert to M4V instead of MP4?

The two formats share the same MPEG-4 Part 14 container, so technically MP4 plays anywhere M4V does. The difference is signalling: TV.app, iTunes, and the Apple TV remote treat.m4v files as library content (Home Videos / Movies / Music Videos) and surface Apple-specific metadata like chapter markers and Dolby audio flags. M4V is the right pick if your file is destined for the Apple library; if you want a universal file that also plays on Android and Windows by default, convert to MP4 instead.

How much smaller will the M4V be compared to my AVI?

Typically 40-60% smaller for the same visual quality. AVI's older codecs (DivX, XviD, MPEG-4 ASP) and container overhead produce larger files than modern H.264; HEVC roughly halves that again. A 1 GB DivX AVI usually lands at 400-600 MB as H.264 M4V, or around 250-350 MB as HEVC M4V.

Can I trim or cut my AVI while converting?

Yes — use the trim section to enter a start time and duration in seconds (12.5) or HH:MM:SS.sss (00:01:30.500). This is useful for cutting commercials out of old TV captures or trimming the dead frames at the start and end of an old camcorder AVI before it lands in your TV.app library.

What about interlaced AVI from old camcorders?

Many AVI files from MiniDV camcorders and TV captures are interlaced (60i / 50i). The default conversion preserves the source frame rate; if you see combing artifacts on Apple TV or iPhone, drop the resolution preset to a progressive output (480p / 720p) which forces deinterlacing during the resize stage.

Can I batch convert a folder of AVI files?

Yes — drop in multiple.avi files (DVD rips, camcorder captures, security footage) and they convert in parallel withon our servers. Download individually or as a single ZIP. Settings can apply uniformly across the batch or be set per-file. For other Apple-ecosystem targets see AVI to MOV, and for universal output see AVI to MP4.