What is Windows DVD Maker? It's a free Microsoft DVD burner that runs on Windows XP/Vista/7. In this post, we will introduce basic information about this application, as well as its compatibility with newer Windows and best alternatives. Hope we cover everything you want to know.
Part 1. Windows DVD Maker Overview
Windows DVD Maker is a software application developed by Microsoft for users to burn videos to DVD discs. Burning DVDs is not all it can do; it lets you customize DVD menus, add music and subtitles, adjust aspect ratios, and more.
Key Features:
- Make a custom DVD menu with background music and text.
- Manage multiple video files and organize them as preferred.
- In-built preview feature for assessing the DVD before burning.
- Seamless integration with Windows Media Player and Windows Movie Maker.
- Simplified burning process directly within the application.
- Automatically adapt widescreen videos to the standard DVD format (4:3 aspect ratio) as needed.
Supported Formats:
Windows DVD Maker supports a variety of formats for videos, audio, and images.
- Video formats: ASF, AVI, DVR-MS, M1V, MP2, MP2V, MPE, MPEG, MPG, MPV2, WM, WMV.
- Audio formats: AIF, AIFC, AIFF, ASF, AU, MP2, MP3, MPA, SND, WAV, WMA.
- Image: BMP, DIB, EMF, GIF, JFIF, JPE, JPEG, JPG, PNG, TIF, TIFF, WMF.
Supported Disc Types: DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW, and DVD-ROM.
Part 2. Windows DVD Maker Pros and Cons
- Official Microsoft program; completely built-in and free.
- Easy to understand for non-technical users.
- Produces standard VIDEO_TS structure discs that play on most DVD players, TVs, and devices like Xbox 360.
- Provides animated menu templates, customizable fonts, button styles, and text.
- Sends files smoothly to other Microsoft applications, such as Windows Movie Maker and Windows Photo Gallery.
- Only available in certain versions of Windows XP, Windows 7, and Windows Vista.
- Almost no real video editing features like trimming, cropping, or applying effects.
- Can't burn Blu-ray discs, which have been popular in recent years.
- Can't directly create ISO files or DVD folders.
Part 3. How to Burn MP4 with Windows DVD Maker Step-by-Step
Although MP4 is one of the most common video formats now, Windows DVD Maker doesn't support it natively. Before you start, convert MP4 to MPEG, AVI, or WMA.
Step 1 Click Start, then All Programs. Find Windows DVD Maker and open it.
Step 2 Click the Add Items button at the top left. Load the WMV file you want to burn to a DVD.
Step 3 Click Options. You can choose a preferred aspect ratio, playback settings, video format, and DVD burner speed. When you finish, click Next.
Step 4 Pick a template for your DVD menu. Then click Preview to test how the menu would look.
Step 5 Insert a blank DVD and click Burn. Then all you need to do is wait. It can take a long time, often longer than the video length itself.
Part 4. Is Windows DVD Maker Still Available in 2026?
No. Windows DVD Maker has been officially discontinued since the release of Windows 8, and removed from later Windows editions. There's no reliable way to download Windows DVD Maker on Windows 10 or 11. It's now a legacy program on older OS only.
Part 5. Best Alternatives for Windows DVD Maker on Windows 10, 11, and Mac
The dedicated DVD burner, Windows DVD Maker, is becoming a thing of the past. To burn DVDs more effectively, you can try these alternatives on Windows 10, Windows 11, or Mac.
Tipard DVD Creator
Tipard DVD Creator is a versatile, user-friendly software program designed for producing professional-quality DVDs on Windows and Mac. It supports a wide range of video formats, including the most popular ones: MP4, AVI, MKV, WMV, and MOV. It can also burn a video to Blu-ray.
Additionally, the software offers an impressive selection of DVD menu templates, allowing you to personalize DVDs with background images, music, text, and buttons. Moreover, Tipard DVD Creator provides a series of video editing tools: trimming, cropping, adding watermarks, and applying visual effects. You can create a DVD exactly as you imagine it.
DVD Styler
DVD Styler is a solid free alternative to Windows DVD Maker. It works on Windows, Mac, and Linux, supports most common video, audio, and photo formats, and is completely open source. You can add audio tracks and subtitles directly to the DVD.
It supports most modern video formats, but it often takes even longer than Windows DVD Maker, and the menu templates are limited. It also lacks any built-in video or audio editing tools.
Mac Finder
Finder is the built-in file manager on Mac, and it's one of the easiest ways to burn files to a DVD without installing any extra software. It works well for copying videos, audio, photos, documents, and folders onto a disc for storage or backup – basically treating the DVD like a large USB drive.
But there's an important limitation: Finder can only create data DVDs. These discs work fine on computers, but they won't play on a regular home DVD player. Finder doesn't have the tools needed to create a proper Video DVD. Neither does it carry a DVD menu creator.
Conclusion
The Windows DVD Maker program is one of the best applications for creating DVDs. But now that it has been discontinued, many users have to turn to similar software to create DVDs. Tipard DVD Creator is overall the best option, with its fast speed, powerful features, diverse menu templates, and compatibility. Start creating your own DVD now.
More Reading
About the Author
Tipard DVD Creator