Image burning is one of the fastest and most efficient ways to save large amounts of data to DVD or CD.

Images are increasingly popular on torrent sites and other download portals because they allow users to download high volumes of data in a relatively small file. What's more, it's instantly ready for DVD or disk burning. ImgBurn is an ultra-lightweight CD/DVD/HD/DVD and Blu-ray burning application that everyone should have in their toolkit. It has several 'Modes', with each one performing a different task.

These include "Read" which reads a disc to an image file; "Build" which creates an image file from files on your computer or network; "Write" which writes an image file to a disc and "Verify" which checks whether a disk is 100% readable. With this last option, you can also ensure that the data is correct by asking ImgBurn to compare your disk against an image file. Finally, you have "Discovery" which puts your drive to the test to find just what kind of speeds and disk types it can support.

If you are experiencing any burning problems, it may be that your drive is not fast enough to handle the settings you have configured or that you are using the wrong kind of disks.

A very lightweight an powerful image burner that requires little experience but will ensure all your images are burned in a flash.

Download ImgBurn 2.4.2.0 in Softonic

To extract and compress your files, 7-Zip is a perfectly viable alternative to the better known WinZip or WinRAR. The application works exactly like its main competitors yet manages to mix in WinZip’s selection of tools with WinRAR’s versatility.

The 7-Zip interface is similar to that of its competitors, with a main file manager and a command line to search and select files to extract or compress. The control panel is comprised of the essential buttons like extract, add and test, but also features copy, move and delete functions to allow you to manage your files. 7-Zip extracts and compresses files as fast as WinZip and WinRAR and handles the main archive formats like ZIP, TAR, RAR and ISO.

The archiving process is where 7-Zip differs most from its rivals. Where WinZip only lets you compress to ZIP and WinRAR to RAR or ZIP, 7zip offers you up to 5 different archive formats to choose from. The application lets you choose the update mode, depending on whether you want to add and replace files, refresh the archive or just synchronize files. If you don’t want somebody opening up your archive without your permission, you can set a password to protect your archive.We particularly liked the split tool because it can cut up your archive into equal parts which fit on a floppy, CD or DVD, handy if you need to distribute a particularly large archive.

Security is where 7-Zip lags behind its main rivals. There is no option to scan archives for viruses and you can’t repair damaged or corrupted files. While you can set a password to protect your archive, you can’t choose between different levels of encryption.

7-Zip might not be as secure as WinZip or WinRAR but it is definitely more versatile. It works with more archive formats and offers many useful tools like update mode or splitting. If you feel too limited by WinZip and if you don’t like WinRAR we suggest giving 7-Zip a try and taking advantage of all its possibilities.

Download 7-Zip 4.60 in Softonic

One of the best things about the PSP, apart from the brilliant games, is that you can watch films on it.

However, if your favourite films are on DVD, you'll need some way to convert them and the quality of the conversions can greatly affect your enjoyment of the films. Xilisoft DVD to PSP Converter is powerful and highly user friendly DVD to PSP converter which helps convert DVD to multiple formats including PSP, MP4, MPEG-4, H.264/PSP AVC Video, DVD to PSP audio format MP3 and DVD to PS3 Video MPEG-4. In addition, it supports DVD to PSP MP3, AAC, DVD to PS3 Video (480p, 720p, 1080i) MPEG-4. Although it's ideal for beginners, it will also appeal to those who want a bit more control over conversions due to a multitude of customisation options. Depending on whether you want your video to fill the whole screen, it allows you to convert DVD to PSP by customising the resolution, file size and even the part of the DVD that you want to rip. Even better, you can avoid ripping subtitle and audio tracks that you don't need by choosing to ignore them completely. The interface is simple but elegant with a preview window in the bottom left hand corner to help you review conversions or select the section of DVD that you want to rip. The conversion time may be a little longer than you're used to with such apps but the all round usability more than makes up for that.

A quick, easy and convenient burner that will impress with it's usability and range of conversion formats.

Download Xilisoft DVD to PSP Converter 5.0.40.0729 in Softonic

The Video Converter is a powerful, universal AVI MPEG converter. Video converter can convert video file between almost all popular video formats such as converting WMV to AVI, WMV to MPEG. Xilisoft Video Converter also supports converting video file between DVD, VCD, SVCD, MOV, RM, AVI, MPEG, WMV, 3GP, etc.

You can select the video and audio codec, set the output parameters. In addition, the video converter provides a powerful way to convert video file to all popular audio file, including MP2, MP3, AC3, RA, M4A, OGG, AAC etc. all conversion processes, such as AVI to MPEG, WMV to MPEG, WMV to AVI, are very easy and fast with hight quality.

Download Xilisoft Video Converter 5.0.98.0729 in Softonic

eXtreme Movie Manager (formerly DivxManager) is a powerful program used to manage your movie collection. It lets you catalogue your collection with detailed information and supports many video formats such as DivX, XviD, DVD, VHS, SVHS, VCD, DVD-R, or LaserDisc. eXtreme Movie Manager is not just a movie/video collection manager, it's also a movie and actor database and a cover manager.

With the exclusive "MagicScript" Technology, and the appropriate script, XMM allows you to retrieve movie information (especially pictures, images, and covers) from any online movie databases. You can also create and edit your own scripts with the built-in editor.

Download eXtreme Movie Manager 6.3.5.0 in Softonic

With multimedia portable devices growing in popularity and features, it's not surprising that DVD ripping tools have started to offer support for them so that you can take your favorite movies anywhere with you.

Xilisoft DVD to 3GP Converter is one of those applications: a full featured DVD ripper than has been especially developed to extract all data inside your DVD movies and convert it right away to the most popular video formats for portable devices such as mobile phones, Blackberry, iPod, iPhone and PSP.

The program lets you choose the video size, image quality and audio quality, and also create and use different profiles according to the target format or device. In addition to ripping the whole DVD, you can also select specific chapters and convert only those. The whole process is done via drop-down menus and the program is generally very easy to use.

With Xilisoft DVD to 3GP Converter you can rip the contents of your favorite DVD movies and convert them to mobile video in just a few easy steps.

Download Xilisoft DVD to 3GP Converter 5.0.40.0729 in Softonic

While the iPod is best know for being the music lovers best friend, it can also be a useful tool for movie buffs.

Xilisoft DVD to iPod Converter lets you extract DVD video and audio tracks of DVDs and convert them to audio and video formats compatible with the iPod Video (MPEG-4, MP3, AAC or M4A formats). Like most Xillisoft converters, it's very easy to follow and use with a good looking interface to boot. Conversions are fast but most impressive is the quality which is as good as any iPod converter you'll find. The conversion process is very simple - you can choose to either rip and convert a whole film or sections of a film. Apart from this, there are some customisation options too such as setting a file limit for your conversions, normalizing audio or the ability to compress files that have been extracted to fit your iPod - useful for if you've filled your hard drive with too many tunes. You can also customise the audio, subtitles and part of a DVD that you want to rip. If you've got an iPhone, the program has also now been updated to allow you to put films on your hard drive too.

Flexible, simple to convert and fast, Xilisoft DVD to iPod Converter has more than enough to fulfil your conversion needs.

Download Xilisoft DVD to iPod Converter 5.0.40.0729 in Softonic

With multimedia portable devices growing in popularity and features, it's not surprising that DVD ripping tools like Xilisoft DVD Ripper Ultimate have started to offer support for them so that you can take your favorite movies anywhere with you.

Xilisoft DVD Ripper Ultimate is one of those applications: a full featured DVD ripper than can extract all data inside your DVD movies and convert it right away to another video format, including the most popular ones and – of course – video formats for mobile devices such as the iPod, the iPhone and the PSP.

Xilisoft DVD Ripper Ultimate lets you choose the video size, image quality and audio quality, and also create and use different profiles according to the target format or device. Also, Xilisoft DVD Ripper Ultimate lets you trim specific video fragments, edit video effects, adjust subtitles and even add a watermark so that you obtain fully customized DVD video and audio files.

Additionally, Xilisoft DVD Ripper Ultimate can help you clip video segment, crop video size, edit video effects, adjust subtitle, and add video watermark, to get the customized DVD audio and video files.

In addition to ripping the whole DVD, you can also select specific chapters and convert only those. The whole process is done via drop-down menus and Xilisoft DVD Ripper Ultimate is generally very easy to use.

With Xilisoft DVD Ripper Ultimate you can rip the contents of your favorite DVD movies and convert them to different formats – including mobile video - in just a few easy steps.

Download Xilisoft DVD Ripper Ultimate 5.0.40.0729 in Softonic

With multimedia portable devices growing in popularity and features, it's not surprising that DVD ripping tools have started to offer support for them so that you can take your favorite movies anywhere with you.

Xilisoft DVD Ripper Platinum is one of those applications: a full featured DVD ripper than can extract all data inside your DVD movies and convert it right away to another video format, including the most popular ones and – of course – video formats for mobile devices such as the iPod, the iPhone and the PSP.

The program lets you choose the video size, image quality and audio quality, and also create and use different profiles according to the target format or device, though I must say the profile creation process is not very intuitive. In addition to ripping the whole DVD, you can also select specific chapters and convert only those. The whole process is done via drop-down menus and the program is generally very easy to use.

With Xilisoft DVD Ripper Platinum you can rip the contents of your favorite DVD movies and convert them to different formats – including mobile video - in just a few easy steps.

Download Xilisoft DVD Ripper Platinum 5.0.40.0729 in Softonic

Do you have a favorite DVD movie that you would like to watch on the move on your mobile phone? Are you having trouble in finding the right app you convert it?

Plato DVD to 3GP Converter is what you're looking for. This simple video converter has been especially developed to convert DVD movies right into the standard video used for most mobile devices, 3GP.

The program is very easy to use. Simply load the DVD movie you want to convert from the DVD drive on your computer and tweak the conversion options according to your needs or the characteristics of the target mobile device: video size, bitrate, frame rate, aspect ratio and a lot more. The program can also be set to automatically shut down the computer when the conversion is finished. Apart from that, there are no other configuration settings.

I especially liked the simplicity of use of Plato DVD to 3GP Converter. On the downside, the interface is a bit too dull. Also, it would be great to have predefined profiles for certain devices, such as the iPod, the iPhone or the PSP.

If you want to convert your favorite DVD movies to 3GP and carry them on your mobile device wherever you go, this is the tool you need.

Download Plato DVD to 3GP Converter 7.86 in Softonic

If you're looking for a powerful high-quality video converter, player, editor for MPEG, QuickTime, and iPod clips then MPEG Streamclip may fit the bill.

Not only that, MPEG Streamclip now edits DivX and can even download the latest DivX releases from the DivX corporation. It's clear that MPEG Streamclip is a multi-faceted utility that can be used to do a variety of things from playing most movie formats and then performing simple editing in terms of Cut, Copy, Paste, and Trimming clips (which isn't much but enough for most of us).

Because the editing feature is so limited however, it may make more sense to import the semi-edited files you have and then import them into a DVD authoring application to burn them to disk or another editing program such as Windows Movie Maker.

MPEG Streamclip is an all in one solution to convert MPEG video to multiple formats, from AVI or QuickTime DV up through MPEG-4 and perform basic editing on them.

Download MPEG Streamclip 1.2 in Softonic

Nero is a mammoth multimedia solution that does just about everything from CD and DVD burning to audio and video editing. This latest version is a bit of a disappointment as it doesn't really bring anything drastically new from version 7. The main improvements are an updated design and reinforced security. Let’s look around at the features available in Nero 8.

This latest version is Windows Vista certified and if you have Microsoft’s latest OS installed you’ll be able to enjoy the Nero sidebar gadget and sleek, clear Vista interface, such as the “Glass” window for StartSmart. Nero Home, the multimedia manager with a DVD menu-like interface, has been slightly improved. Apart from handling all your photos, videos and songs it can also play radio stations and, if you have a TV card set up, play and record TV stations. Furthermore, Nero can stream content to your brand new Xbox 360.

The StartSmart interface is your gateway to all the Nero tools. You can select the individual applications from the left sided menu or choose the file you want to work with (data, audio, photo and video or backup) from the main menu. It’s best to choose the disc type, CD or DVD from the drop-down menu at the top to get the most relevant possibilities. Even though StartSmart gives quick access to all the Nero applications, we found the whole interface too small and cluttered. The window can’t be resized and you need to scroll through to find the tools you need. RSS feeds added to version 8 feel a bit clumsy. They don't show items in a proper feed list and only seem to link back to the Nero help and support pages.

Before it became a full multimedia suite though, Nero was renowned for its burning tools, essentially due to its flagship program, Nero Burning ROM. With it, you can adjust the disc type, set restrictions and control the writing speed. SecurDisc technology has also been added in the latest version to encrypt your CDs or DVDs. If you don’t want to get bogged down in the details, use Nero Express instead to burn your project and design your own disc cover quickly.

Another of the classic Nero apps that has been improved is Nero Showtime. This DVD player boasts support for HD-DVD and Blu-Ray, and will save you from upgrading when these formats become the norm. Just use Nero InfoTool beforehand to check if your system can handle these new formats. The program has also seen the introduction of AVCHD playback and authoring technology used in camcorder videos. Support for Windows Media Format DRM is also part of the deal and you can encode videos to play on your iPod, mobile or PlayStation Portable (PSP) thanks to Nero Recode.

Nero’s strength lies in the wealth of multimedia tools it offers to users. You can do just about everything from managing your media to burning CDs and DVDs or editing and watching high quality videos. The latest release has added a number of significant improvements to handle all the latest technological advances like Windows Vista, iPods or the Xbox 360.

Ironically, Nero´s power also contributes to its downfall. Nero packs so many applications into one package that it’s very easy for the common user to get lost in the menus. The size of the suite(600 MBs) and its draining of PC resources also means that you’ll need a high-spec PC to run it smoothly.

It's a bit surprising that Nero decided to jump to version 8 as there's nothing really that new in this latest outing. Once more, Nero will cater to those users looking for a full multimedia suite and not worried about eating up their PC's resources.

Download Nero 8.3.6.0 in Softonic

The Cheetah DVD Burner provides an easy-to-use interface for burning DVDs. The application boasts a number of handy features to make the process of burning CDs even quicker and easier. You can carry out the following projects:

• Burn a Video DVD from an ISO, Bin/Cue, or Video_TS folder
• Backup your data on 8.5 GB DVD+R discs
• Backup your data on DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD+R, DVD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RAM
• Burn a standard CD or CD-RW
• Creates Red Book compatible audio CDs from mp3, mp2, avi, ogg, wma, and wav files
• Extract audio from an Audio CD
• Copy a Data CD
• Copy an audio disc
• Burn Bin/Cue image files
• Builds ISO Images from selected files for burning at a later date
• Convert audio files from mp3, mp2, avi, ogg, wma, and wav files
• Erase CD/DVD discs

It has the following features:

Features:

• The Cheetah DVD Burner passes the Video DVD Verifier tests and Mastering Applications like the most known Philips Video DVD Verifier
• Create Bootable CD/DVD from .img files
• Supports use of high write speeds - Designed for high data rates
• Support for hardware buffer underrun protection systems, like BURNproof, JustLink, Power-Burn, SafeBurn, SeamlessLink etc
• Burn Multi-Session Data CD/DVD with all types of media
• No further writing is possible after the disc is burned
• Performs a binary compare with the source files
• Burn Joliet directories with 64 char file names

Download Cheetah DVD Burner 2.33 in Softonic

Avidemux is a free video editor designed for simple cutting, filtering and encoding tasks. It supports many file types, including AVI, DVD compatible MPEG files, MP4 and ASF, using a variety of codecs. Tasks can be automated using projects, job queue and powerful scripting capabilities.

Avidemux is available for Linux, BSD, Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows under the GNU GPL license. The program was written from scratch by Mean, but code from other people and projects has been used as well. Patches, translations and even bug reports are always welcome.

Download Avidemux 2.4.3 in Softonic

MagicISO is a powerful and easy CD/DVD image file edit tool. It can open/create/edit/extract CD/DVD image files, and convert BIN to ISO and back. Make image files from CD-ROM or hard disk, and handle bootable information. It can also convert BIN or any other format file created by CD burning software (Such as Nero-Burning ROM, Easy CD Create) or virtual CD-ROM driver software (such as Daemon-tools) to standard ISO format.

MagicISO has the ability to create ISO image files. You can directly add/delete/rename files or folder in CD image file(s) with MagicISO. It can handle up to 10G large sizes so that user can extract/edit/open DVD image files in ease. You can also use MagicISO to make CD/DVD image from CD-ROM to hard disk in order to backup CD/DVD or use it with virtual CD or Virtual machine.

MagicISO has the ability to make bootable CD/DVD image file. With MagicISO, you can process the boot information for CD/DVD image file, as well as directly add/remove/extract boot image for the CD/DVD image file. MagicISO can also make multiple bootable CD/DVD image file. Using this function, you can combine multiple OS installation CD into one CD/DVD image file in order to install multiple OS from one CD/DVD. MagicISO embed Windows Explorer and use the double window unification user contact interface. Use the quick button and the mouse Drag & Drops files between Windows Explorer and MagicISO so that you can handle the CD/DVD image file easy but powerful enough.

Download MagicISO Maker 5.5.269 in Softonic

VSO ConvertXtoDVD is an attractively designed and easy-to-use video burner that gives you the power to convert and burn a huge range of formats.

VSO ConvertXtoDVD can handle just about any format you throw at it including AVI, WMV, MKV, YouTube, OGM, MPEG and Quicktime. So instead of having to watch your downloaded films and videos on your PC, you can watch them in the comfort of your lounge on your DVD Player. VSO ConvertXtoDVD goes much further than just mere DVD creation though because it helps you create and author DVD menus.

It offers the possibility to add background video, image or audio and even have chapter and audio/subtitle menus. If you do want to add subtitles, it supports most of the major formats including SRT, .SUB/ID and .SSA and VSO CovertXtoDVD gives you control over color and font selection, and supports tags like italic, bold and the ability to toggle them on or off with DVD player remote control. The encoder makes a decent job of converting videos in terms of the output quality although it is slightly slow - estimate about 1 hour for conversion of a full movie.

A powerful and easy way to get your favourite movies and video clips onto DVD and give them an extra touch of class with a menu.

Download VSO ConvertXtoDVD 3.1.3.40 in Softonic

PixFiler is a program that makes it quick and easy to keep your digital photos organized. The program is designed to be easy to use. It will locate and display your photo in just seconds. It will read most image formats, even raw files from most digital cameras, no matter if they are stored on your hard disk or on a CD or DVD. And it doesn't slow down as your image collection grows. Several 10,000s is no problem for PixFiler.

Benefits of PixFinder:

• Fast and easy to use
• Powerful tools makes it easy to categorize and annotate the photos
• Will let you browse photos on CD/DVD without having to insert the CD/DVD
• Make reports, prints, and contact sheets
• Make auto-run CDs and DVDs
• Supports many file formats, including RAW for most digital cameras
• Full screen viewing and zooming
• Get information from EXIF and IPTC meta data
• Users can share the same data on a network

Download PixFiler 5.2.5 in Softonic

Copying DVDs (for your own use, of course) is becoming increasingly difficult as manufacturers improve the security encoding on DVDs. AnyDVD however claims to be able to crack any DVD encryption code and judging by the number of downloads, Softonic users are certainly endorsing it too.

The beauty of AnyDVD is that it simply works in the background to automatically remove the copy protection of a DVD movie as soon as it's inserted into the drive. In this way, it can decrypt data without actually saving it to your hard-disk. You can watch the DVD at the same time or just insert a disk and let AnyDVD do its stuff. When you insert a disk, you are automatically prompted whether you want to decrypt it. When it has finished inspecting the disk, the program prompts you to backup the DVD using your preferred backup tool such as CloneDVD or Power DVD Copy.

The programme goes much further than this though. A handy bonus is that you can also remove the RPC region code, thereby making the movie region free and viewable on any DVD player. This is especially useful for those who buy many of their disks abroad or travel a lot. If you want to create a stripped-down version of a DVD, it can also remove unwanted movie features, including subtitles and extras for example. The programme also moves beyond decryption and allows you to control the speed of your DVD drive. This is useful if you’re having trouble playing a DVD properly or if the noise of your drive is causing annoyance. Finally, there’s also an option to display the frequency of your monitor for both NTSC and PAL displays although you probably won’t use this unless you’re having serious display issues.

The only drawback of AnyDVD is the number of daily updates that are released. Whilst this is obviously a good thing in terms of keeping it up-to-date with the latest encryption methods, the update alerts can be rather annoying and are prone to slowing your computer down.

However, this is a small price to pay for a programme that seems able to crack all but the toughest disks and for anyone who likes to create backups of their favourite DVDs, it’s an essential addition to your software collection.

Download AnyDVD HD 6.4.5.6 in Softonic

Good solid free CD and DVD burning software is often hard to find. Just when you've got a problem with your default software or need something in a hurry, you'll find that most only burn a few minutes for free or you'll have to upgrade.

FinalBurner Free is the free version of the developer's range of burning software. FinalBurner Free allows you to create data, audio, DVD disks and burn them onto CD R/RW, DVD+R/RW, DVD-R/RW, DVD DL. However, it does not burn to BluRay or HD-DVD for which you'll have to upgrade to the pro version.

Alternatively, FinalBurner Free can also create an ISO image of a disk if you want to copy a DVD in it's entirety. There are very few advanced features or complications with FinalBurner which makes it easy for beginners although if you need to customise the burning speed and burning method of FinalBurner Free according to the capabilities of your burner, you may find it limited. However, that is not to say that there aren't any options to customise a little in FinalBurner Free as there are. Of particular note, is a new option that makes the burning of CD abd DVD labels much easier via a setup wizard within FinalBurner Free if your printer supports it.

It's not a solution for new generation BluRay burning but for standard DVD and CD burning, FinalBurner Free does a basic but efficient job.

Download FinalBurner 2.1.0.130 in Softonic

Design and create professional CD/DVD and Jewel Case Labels with this award winning software. CD Box Labeler Pro's easy-to-use interface let you create labels in minutes. Don't spend hours on making labels, CD Box Labeler is created to make things easier for you, but still powerful to make professional CD & DVD labels.

Features:

• Font preview
• Image preview
• CDDB Support
• Multiple image support
• Rotate, flip, mirror images
• Filters & effects on images
• Support for shaded colors
• Rich text (multiple font, sizes, styles colors etc.)
• Read contents of the CD
• Ability to print on commercial made labels
• Ability to print on plain paper

Download CD Box Labeler Pro 1.9.9 H in Softonic