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Acala DVD Ripper Professional Free Copy is a free DVD ripper. It's an easy-to-use program for ripping some DVD videos and converting them into a number of video formats, as well as ripping the audio into popular audio formats.
The interface is good, though very simple in appearance. We were able to understand the layout and navigate it easily, but getting started was a little difficult without the tutorial video. The tutorial video doesn't completely match the free version we downloaded, but the steps are pretty much the same. Without it, we probably wouldn't have known how to set up the subtitles or even how to start recording. In our testing, the recording process took about an hour for a 3-hour video. You can also have the computer shut down after recording, so you can set it up to work and walk away. The software was stable and didn't have any issues while we were testing it. The video produced was good-quality as well.
Downloading this software is free, though you can register it. We aren't sure how different the registered version is, but the free version seems to work just fine for even a novice user once you watch the quick tutorial video. All the keys seem to be accessible even in the free version. Acala's download process includes a toolbar installation option, which is not necessary and would have been installed if we hadn't read through carefully. We would recommend this to anyone as long as they watch the tutorial video.
Publisher's Description
From Acala Software:
Acala DVD Ripper Professional is an easy-to-use program which can rip your DVD movies into almost all popular formats, and extract DVD audio track and rip DVD audio to mp3/wma/aac, pop music format files. Not an expert? Don't worry. Acala DVD Ripper Professional will do all for you. It can automatically shut down your computer after ripping is done, which means you can just go to have a cup of coffee or even have a nap. The enhanced build-in encoder compresses efficiently and outputs files in minimum size but with best quality. Try Acala DVD Ripper Professional now and enjoy a refreshing digital life.
Key Features: 1. Convert your DVDs to the following formats with high speed and high quality: 1) Copy DVDs to AVI: AVI MPEG-4 QVGA/VGA; 2) Copy DVDs to MPEG: MPEG1 Video CD ( NTSC, PAL), MPEG2 Super Video CD ( NTSC, PAL); 3) Copy DVDs to iPod MP4: iPod MPEG-4, iPod H.264; 4) Copy DVDs to iPhone: iPhone MPEG-4, iPhone H.264; 5) Copy DVDs to YouTube FLV; 6) Copy DVDs to Apple TV: Apple TV MPEG-4, Apple TV H.264; 7) Copy DVDs to WMV; 8) Copy DVDs to Sony PSP: PSP MPEG4, PSP AVC; 9) Copy DVDs to Mobile 3GP MPEG-4; 10) Copy DVDs to Sony PS3 MPEG-4 AVC; 11) Copy DVDs to Microsoft Zune: Zune WMV, Zune MPEG-4; 12) DVD Copy, Shrink DVD to DVD main movie; 13) Extract DVD audio tracks and rip DVD audio to mp3, wma, wav, m4a, aac pop music files. 2. User-friendly interface. 3. Advanced conversion technology provides excellent image and sound quality. 4. Smaller-sized outputs can save more space for your portable video players. 5. Convenient default output settings for beginners. 6. Powerful customization settings for video, audio and recording mode. 7. Build-in DVD player to playback DVD movie for preview. 8. Automatically shutdown computer after ripping is done. 9. 24-hour technical support.
What's new in this version: Version 6.3.6.326 may include unspecified updates, enhancements, or bug fixes.
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All versions:
3.1 starsout of 101 votes
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Current version:
1.6 starsout of 9 votes
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My rating:
Write review
Results 1-9 of 9
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"Copy doesn't work for protected (rental) DVDs."
Version: Acala DVD Ripper Professional 6.3.6.326
Pros
There are none.
Cons
Sneaked in a whole bunch of other unrelated/unwanted software--I had to eyeball and find suspicious ones and uninstall.
Summary
Not worth it.
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"It comes loaded with a ton of crapware"
Version: Acala DVD Ripper Professional 6.3.6.326
Pros
No positves (see below)
Cons
I downloaded the program and even before it had finished installing it the family computer was flooded with advertisements, that would not go away
Summary
*****
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"Stay Away Bad"
Version: Acala DVD Ripper Professional 6.3.6.326
Pros
didn't find and
Cons
Installs garbage on your comp!!!! Bad!
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"BSOD when used"
Version: Acala DVD Ripper Professional 6.3.6.326
Pros
It installed without a BSOD???
Cons
When I tried to burn a dvd I received a swift BSOD after about 10 seconds.
Summary
It will BSOD windows 7 on my system. I think they have some bugs to workout in the latest version on cnet. I'm uninstalling it.
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"It does what it promises"
Version: Acala DVD Ripper Professional 6.3.6.326
Pros
- No-nonsense user interface is easy to follow
- Ripping times were shorter than competitor's product
- The finished product actually played on stock media player without additional codecsCons
None found
Summary
I had a very specific requirement to convert a DVD to AVI format before using a frame grabber. This program did what it said, making a perfect AVI version of the disc that played the first time, without any fanfare.
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"Could not get it to work."
Version: Acala DVD Ripper Professional 6.3.6.326
Pros
Very little since we could not get it to rip more than one track.
Cons
See above.
Summary
Not the best, we'll keep looking.
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"Surreptitious Adware Loader"
Version: Acala DVD Ripper Professional 6.3.6.326
Pros
Couldn't say, because we opted not to test it after it also seemed to install "Wajam" adware.
Cons
"Wajam" adware was installed without our knowledge or permission at the same time as Acala software. Wajam software crashed and restarted Firefox, losing valuable browser data in the process.
Summary
From my test installation on a new, properly-maintained Windows 8 box, I'd say Acala software should be re-evaluated for prospective removal from Cnet's sites. I'm the second user to notice this adware behavior.
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"Will not do the job."
Version: Acala DVD Ripper Professional 6.3.6.326
Pros
I could find none.
Cons
-Tries to install bloatware
-Tried to rip a DVD to get music video on my iPod. Will not work with copyrighted material.Summary
Don't expect to be able to back up any dvd's with this software.
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"Seems to force addon now"
Version: Acala DVD Ripper Professional 6.3.6.326
Pros
Cancelled download
Cons
Now the installer seems to have a 'Special offer' during install, they do not display what this special offer is or give any chance to decline the 'offer'. Cancelled install at that point.
Summary
Ended up cancelling the install due to an offer that was not displayed (just expected to blindly accept) with no option to decline. Obvious adware/spyware.
Results 1-9 of 9
