Have you ever wanted to backup protected DVD’s or CD’s (for personal use only)? Are you tired of CD/DVD writer programs telling you that a CD or DVD is copyrighted and therefore copying is not allowed?
Are tired of family members borrowing your original CD’s or DVD’s and returning them damaged or scratched, or maybe not returning them at all? Well, I have some good news for you! There are some free utilities you can use to get around the copy protection and make backup copies of your original movies or music.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS (must accept before continuing)
The information in this article is only meant for mature audiences, so only continue reading if you agree to use these utilities responsibly and not for piracy purposes. If for any reason, you decide to use the suggested utilities for unlawful purposes, BayReviews.com, will not be held responsible for any legal actions taken against you. Please continue reading if you agree to these terms. If you do not agree, I strongly suggest reading any further. If you continue reading, it will be assumed that you agree with these terms and conditions.
RECOMMENDED UTILITIES
- CloneDVD with AnyDVD ($39 USD / Trial Available)
- CloneCD ($39 USD / Trial Available)
- DVD Shrink (Free) with Nero ($80 to $100 USD / Trial Available)
I am only going to recommend these three utilities in the order listed because I have been using these for some years now and they have not failed me yet. I still use them for all my personal backup needs. Please keep reading to get more information on the above-listed utilities.
BENEFITS OF MAKING BACKUP COPIES OF YOUR ORIGINALS
First of all, when you make a backup copy of an original CD or DVD media, you will prevent the original copy from getting damaged or lost. In the event that damages occur or you lose the backup copy, you will still have the original that you can use to make another backup copy for daily use. You can also let your family borrow the backup copy from you and do not worry about it getting damaged or lost. I know you have family members that borrow from you and never return; I think everyone has a family member who does that. Well, here is a great idea for you: make backup copies of your originals.
WHAT IS CLONEDVD?
CloneDVD is a DVD burning software made by SlySoft that is just like any other DVD burning software utility available today. What makes it different is its ability to combine its quick ripping and burning capabilities with AnyDVD’s ability to decrypt any copyrighted DVD to burn any and all DVD movies for sale today. CloneDVD also maintains excellent picture quality while decrypting and compressing large movies. CloneDVD is also capable of compressing one whole movie into a single 4.7GB DVD media.
Description from Manufacturers website:
CloneDVD copies movies to create unparalleled picture quality DVD backups; whether it is the main title you are copying or the complete DVD. CloneDVD will compress long footage at high speed to the highest of quality using specialized transcoding technology that allows you to select your audio and language settings and also the final target size. Easy for even the novice user, CloneDVD’s intuitive Filmstrip assistant guides you through all the available configuration settings, allowing you to choose which chapters to include and offering the option to trim individual chapters. A visual quality bar shows how your configuration choices affect the quality of the final copy.
Cost: $39.00 (US)
Download Size: 5226KB or 5.10MB
Website: http://www.slysoft.com
WHAT IS ANYDVD?
AnyDVD works hand-in-hand with almost any DVD burning software utility to decrypt copyrighted DVD media so you can make backup copies for personal use without any difficulties. It works best with CloneDVD since it is made by the same manufacturer (SlySoft).
Description from Manufacturers website:
AnyDVD works in the background to automatically remove the copy protection of a DVD movie as soon as it’s inserted into the drive, allowing you then to backup the movie using a DVD backup tool such as CloneDVD. You can also remove the RPC region code, thereby making the movie region free and viewable on any DVD player and with any DVD player software. AnyDVD is capable of removing unwanted movie features, including subtitles and prohibition messages such as copyright and FBI warnings. It also allows you to launch an external application whenever you insert or remove a disc, or prevent ‘PC-friendly’ software from automatically launching when you insert a video DVD. Decryption is not all that AnyDVD offers. You can control the drive speed of your DVD drive, allowing you to reduce the noise level when watching movies on your PC. You can even adjust the display frequency of your monitor for both NTSC and PAL displays. But AnyDVD doesn’t just stop at DVDs. It also decrypts protected audio CDs to allow you to copy them.
Cost: $39.00 (US)
Download Size: 1212KB or 1.18MB
Website: http://www.slysoft.com
WHAT IS CLONECD?
Like CloneDVD, CloneCD is a CD burning software made by SlySoft that will rip and burn any CD (even copyrighted ones) quickly and easily. It makes a 1 to 1 copy so you get exactly what you start out with. There is not quality loss or degrading.
Description from Manufacturers website:
CloneCD is the perfect tool to make backup copies of your music and data CDs, regardless of copy protection. CloneCD’s award-winning user interface allows you to copy almost any CD in just a few mouse clicks. Since the release of 5.0, CloneCD is not only able to copy CDs but also all DVD formats, such as DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD+R Dual Layer, and DVD-RAM. The movies are copied 1:1 and therefore not modified (compressed). Note that to copy movie DVDs you also require AnyDVD. CloneCD also works with other formats such as ISO and UDF files and copies CDs/DVDs with the new SafeDisc 3 Copy Protection System. CloneCD allows you to create perfect 1:1 copies of your valuable original compact discs. Should your copy-protected music CD not play in your car audio, the backup created by CloneCD will. Slysoft combines knowledge and innovation with many years of experience and direct communication with customers to provide constant improvements, therefore making CloneCD the highest quality copying application around.
Cost: $39.00 (US)
Download Size: 2483KB or 2.43MB
Website: http://www.slysoft.com
WHAT IS DVD SHRINK?
DVD Shrink will copy most copyrighted DVD movies without ever needing an additional utility like AnyDVD. If there is a DVD that is highly encrypted with a newer copyright technology, then you can use AnyDVD to decrypt those. DVD Shrink is free and fast, but the quality may not be too great. DVD Shrink also has a built-in compression feature to compress one whole movie into a single 4.7GB DVD media.
Description from Manufacturers website:
DVD Shrink is a software to backup DVD discs. You can use this software in conjunction with DVD burning software of your choice, to make a backup copy of any DVD video disc.
DVD Shrink will also burn your backup DVD if you have installed the latest version of Nero. You can download a demo version of Nero here. If you already possess alternative burning software and prefer to stick with it, then you can still use DVD Shrink. The output from DVD Shrink can be saved as files on your hard drive, which you can then burn with software of your choice.
Cost: Free (may be hard to find and download – just Google it)
Download Size: 1065KB or 1.04MB
Website: http://www.dvdshrink.org
WHAT IS NERO?
Nero is a very powerful CD/DVD burning/copying utility but it will not copy or rip copyrighted or encrypted CDs or DVDs. You can always use AnyDVD for all your decryption needs. Another downside to Nero is that it is expensive, but it has a lot of features. If you can afford it, go ahead and make this your first choice.
Description from Manufacturers website:
Nero 7 Ultra Edition enables you to experience your digital media in completely new and innovative ways. With the addition of the Nero Home media manager, you can now have the complete PC and TV experience. Whether you want to access your media files from the comfort of your living room, or complete digital media projects on your PC, Nero 7 Ultra Edition is all you need.
Now, with more features than ever before, this powerful software can transform your digital photos into professional animated slideshows, back up all of your valuable data, manage and search your media files, edit video or photos, create DVDs (including menus), stream your files over a media server, and compress files to take on the go. Beginners and experts alike will be amazed by what one solution can do. Really, it’s that good.
Cost: $80.00 to $100.00 (US)
Download Size: 100MB
Website: http://www.nero.com
WHAT I USE THESE FOR?
I used to use DVD Shrink a lot to make backups of all my movies, but then a friend of mine suggested CloneDVD and AnyDVD. I think CloneDVD is slower than DVD Shrink but the quality is a little better. If you watch the copied DVDs on a DVD player, you will not notice any major quality differences. But if you watch it on your computer, you will notice the noise that is the result of compression. You can eliminate that if you use a dual-layer DVD media (8.5GB) that does not require any compression, and therefore no quality loss is present. I use Nero for all my audio and data CD/DVD burning, but I can also use it for DVD movies when combined with AnyDVD or a similar utility.
HOW CAN YOU GET THESE UTILITIES FOR FREE?
Yes, you read it correctly. You can get any software you want for free; the one trick is that you have to look very hard for it. If you look at the right places, you can simply download the full versions for free. If you download the trial version, there are ways to convert them to full with patches or serial keys. These patches and serial keys can be found at some certain websites, but once again you have look for them. Also, there is a huge risk of getting spyware and viruses on your computer if you find the websites that give you these utilities for free. So it is always best to purchase these software utilities; it also keeps the software utilities growing as the cost of the utilities help the developers come up with new ideas and features.
FINAL THOUGHTS
You are probably thinking that I have to be crazy to post this kind of information on a public website… right? Well, I may be crazy but I want to share with everyone the reality. This is of course if you did not know all this already. I think most people out there are already exploring the world of piracy, but I would not recommend doing this. I admit that I used to download all software utilities for free from these so-called ”warez” websites, but I have learned my lesson now after many viruses and spyware. All I can say to explain myself is that I was very young and stupid; and I am sticking to this reason.