Summary :

You may know well about MP3, MP4, and other commonly seen file formats used to store video or audio data, but you may not have heard of DAV, right? In the following post of MiniTool, you’ll know what DAV file format is, where it is used, and how to convert DAV to MP4. Different DAV converters and methods will be introduced.

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What Is DAV

The DAV file is actually a kind of video file; though it’s not as popular as MP4, MP3, and WMA, some of the users’ videos are still kept in DAV format. For instance, the video taken by a DVR365 digital video recorder (DVR) connected to the CCTV security camera will be saved in DAV format. In fact, the recorders and cameras are used widely by security departments for security reasons.

The .dav filename extension will be added to the name of a DAV file, if your system is configured to show file name extensions, you’re able to see it. (I will show you how to let your computer show those extensions later in this article.)

DAV to MP4 for Easier Playing & Editing

The problem is that people said they fail to open a DAV file on their computer, and they want to change the file format from DAV to MP4 for easier playback or editing. The DAV file format is not supported by many software, programs, and systems; so people would like to convert DAV to MP4 (one of the mainstream video file formats) in order to play or edit the DAV videos more easily.

In the next section, I will show some software that can be used as a DAV converter and useful methods for converting DVA to MP4 or other formats. First, let’s see 3 true examples in which DAV to MP4 conversion is required.

Case 1: Free Software To Covert .dav (From DVR) to .mp4 ???

Can anyone recommend a free software to convert .dav files (from a DVR) to .mp4 so that they can be emailed or placed on a cloud server for people to view?- asked NewTwoVideo in VideoHelp Forum

Case 2: how to play DAV files on laptop?

I urgently need to open and play DAV files off CCTV on a laptop but for the life of me I cannot work it out, any simple way of doing it plz?- asked loopy_lass in MoneySavingExpert Forum

Case 3: Recommend DAV to MP4 Converter, Please.

I'm sure it's here in multiple places, but a search in the forum isn't working for me. I have a Starlight SD49225T-HN and love it, but would like to convert some DAV files to MP4. Dahua's ToolBox has proven impossible for me to access. What's with signing in, anyway? :( All of my attempts fail. When I do a Web search for the converter I'm kind of leery of the results. Would appreciate a recommendation or two of converters that have worked well for members. Thanks- posted by Dave McKeen in IP Cam Talk Forum

Convert DAV to MP4

The videos recorded by CCTV cameras will be saved in DAV format through a series of DVR365 digital video recorders (such as DSD304, DSD308, and DSD316). In general, the .dav file is an encrypted format that is compressed with modified MPEG compression. Because of this, a special DAV file player is needed in order to play DAV videos; meanwhile, the regular video editing software on the market doesn’t give support to .dav file.

This is the most important reason why people want to get a DAV to MP4 converter app (to start converting their DAV videos to MP4, so it can be played by most video players).

Choose a Suitable DAV File Converter

The DAV file format is not so user-friendly; it can’t be recognized/not supported by many players on the market. For instance, the popular Windows Media Player and QuickTime give no support to .dav files. Because of this, I’d like to make a list of the .dav player that you can use to play/convert a DAV file on your computer. Please note that this list is in no particular order.

Choice 1: DVR365 Player Software (works on Windows only).

There are two editions for users to choose from:

• DVR365 Single Channel Edition
• DVR365 Multi Channel Edition

DVR365 Player Software is the first choice of lots of users since DAV is exactly the encrypted file format created by DVR365. It is a special software package and separate player software, which only works on a Windows PC (Mac is not supported). When you're planning to use DVR365, you should go to check out the list of updates to ensure that you have the very latest technology. Why? That is because improvements have been made to the software from time to time. You can still use DVR365 Player Software as your DAV file player though the DVR365 range is no longer supported.

• The company had stopped selling the product since 2008.
• This product is replaced by the superior technology of the Zip DVR and NVR Range.

Choice 2: Amcrest Smart Player (works on Windows and Mac).

Most of the video files captured by Amcrest devices are saved in the DAV format, which can’t be recognized and used by many programs and tools. Taking that into account, the Amcrest company decided to develop Amcrest Smart Player and provide the downloadable media player for users to play DAV files as well as convert them to other formats. In this way, the videos can be played (or edited when it’s needed) easily by other tools.

The good news is that Amcrest offers both Smart Player software for PC and Smart Player software for Mac. What’s more, the Smart Player is a video player similar to Windows Media Player on Windows (running Windows 7 or later) and QuickTime on Mac (running Mac OS X or newer).

How to get and use the Smart Player:

1. Download the correct version of the Amcrest Smart Player (PC or Mac) from its official website.
2. Install the software properly and run it to associate certain file types like DAV with the media player for the first time.
3. You can add a DAV video to the Amcrest Smart player by clicking on the folder with the plus sign.
4. Navigate to the DAV file on your computer and open it.
5. Click the Export file and add a checkmark into the box of the DAV file you want to convert.
6. Choose MP4 (or another file format) as the Export format.
7. Click Begin export and select a place to save the converted video.
8. Wait until you see the Export end prompt window.
9. Click OK and go to check the converted file.

Video Converter For Mac Download

Choice 3: VLC media player (works on Windows only).

The VLC media player is a free and open-source portable cross-platform media player software and streaming media server developed by the VideoLAN project.- according to Wikipedia

In addition to desktop operating systems, this DAV file viewer and player is also supported by mobile platforms including Windows Phone, Windows 10 Mobile, Android, iOS, and iPadOS. VLC is one of the most popular and useful media players.

How to play DAV file in VLC:

1. Open your VLC media player.
2. Select Tools from the toolbar at the top.
3. Choose Preferences from the drop-down menu of Tools.
4. Find the Show settings option in the lower left corner of the Advanced Preference window.
5. Check All (not Simple) for it.
6. Look for the Input/Codecs category in the left sidebar.
7. Select Demuxers under it and move to the Demuxer module section in the right panel.
8. Choose H264 video demuxer from the drop-down menu.
9. Click on the Save button and you’ll be brought back to the program.
10. Close the VLC media player.
11. Navigate to the target .dav file, right click on it, and choose Properties.
12. Click on the Change button after Opens with under General tab.
13. Select VLC and click OK. Then, click Apply and OK.
14. Now, you can play the DAV file in VLC by just double clicking on it.

Choice 4: Avdshare Video Converter (works on Windows and Mac).

This downloadable software of Avdshare allows you to convert DAV to MP4, AVI, MPEG, WMV, MOV, and FLV formats on both Windows and Mac OS.

How to use Avdshare Video Converter:

1. Visit this website and download a Mac version or Windows version for free.
2. Install this DAV converter and launch it.
3. Click on the Add File link.
4. Navigate to the path where DAV files are saved.
5. Select one or more .dav files and click Open. (You can also drag and drop the DAV files directly.)
6. Click Profile and choose MP4 as the destination file format.
7. Click Convert and wait for the process to end. (You are also allowed to edit the video by adding watermarks, adding effects, and changing video parameters like size or ratio.)

Choice 5:5KPlayer (works on Windows 10/8/7 and Mac OS).

5KPlayer is also a popular and free video file player and converter. It allows users to convert DAV to MP4, AVI, and FLV so that they can upload the video to YouTube, Facebook, and other online sites.

Other choices for you to play a DAV file:

• Movie Maker
• Media Player Classic
• VideoPad Video Editor
• iSkysoft Video Converter
• Etc.

Please remember to choose the software that works on Mac properly in order to convert DAV to MP4 Mac.

You should read this page if your video files are lost from Dash Cam.

DAV to MP4 Online

Also, the list is in no particular order.

Youtube Video Mp4 Converter Free Download Mac

Choice 1: online-convert.

1. Open this link in your browser.
2. Select Convert To MP4 under Video Converter in the left sidebar.
3. Click on the Choose Files button.
4. Browse your PC and choose the target DAV files; then, click Open.
5. Wait for the uploading process to finish. You can change the video settings if you want.
6. Click on the Start conversion button and wait for it to complete.
7. It will start to download the converted MP4 file in a few seconds. If it failed, you can click download your file link to download it manually.

Choice 2: files-conversion.

1. Go to this page using your browser.
2. Click on the Select a File button -> choose the DAV file -> click Open.
3. MP4 format is selected by default. (If not, please select it from the drop-down list.)
4. Click Convert and wait. Download the converted file to a specified location.

DAV to MP4 free is so easy, right? There are indeed other websites that can help you convert DAV to MP4 online and the conversion steps are basically the same.

Bonus Tip: MiniTool Video Converter

This is an all-in-one Video Converter that can help you convert audio & video files within minutes. It is totally free with no bundle and no ads. Though it can’t support DAV format currently, it can help you convert many other video and audio files.

Please download the software to your computer and then follow the wizard to install it properly.

How to convert video files with MiniTool Video Converter:

1. Double click on the software icon to launch MiniTool Video Converter.
2. Wait a few seconds until you see the main interface.
3. Make sure Video Convert is checked at the top center. (If Video Download is checked, please shift to Video Convert).
4. Click on the Add Files button -> navigate to the video files on your computer in the Import Media window -> choose one or more videos and click Open. (You can also click on the + icon in the middle to open Import Media window.)
5. If you want to select a whole folder, please click on the drop-down arrow and select Add Folder. Then, choose the folder and click OK.
6. Click on the edit icon behind Target to change the File Name and Output path.
7. Click on the diagonal arrow icon under Target to select a target video format and the corresponding resolution. (Step 6 & 7 can be omitted in some cases.)
8. Click on the Convert button and wait for the converting process to finish. (You may click Convert All if you'd like to convert more than one file simultaneously.)
9. Shift to the Converted tab and click Show in Folder to locate the converted video files.

Verdict

Please don’t panic if you haven't seen DAV files before. DAV is a video file format not as popular as MP4, AVI, and MOV, but it is still used by DVR365 digital video recorders. Many people want to complete conversion from DAV to MP4 since they find DAV is not supported by many programs and apps. That’s why I’m writing this – to introduce some DAV converters and help users convert DAV to MP4 easily.