12 DAT to MP4 Converters – How to Convert DAT in VCD to MP4

How do you digitize an old VCD? If you want to extract videos from a VCD, you need to convert the DAT files to MP4. Before opening or converting DAT files, it's important to understand what the VCD DAT format is. This article will walk you through how to convert DAT to MP4 in 12 ways. You will enjoy higher video quality on your PC or other digital players.

Part 1. What is the DAT Format in VCD?

A file with a .dat extension is a generic data file that stores information used by the program that created it. Depending on the application, a DAT file may contain text, images, videos, or configuration data. For VCDs, DAT files are used to store and play video content from the video CD. These DAT files are typically encoded in MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 format and contain the video data extracted from the VCD disc.

You can use any media player that supports the MPEG codec to play VCD videos directly. However, if you want to watch VCD files on an iPhone, Android device, or edit the footage further, you'll need to convert the DAT files to a more compatible format such as MP4.

Part 2. 12 Ways to Convert DAT to MP4 with Ease

1. Tipard Video Converter Ultimate - the Best Way

What is the best way to extract MP4 files from a VCD? How can you convert DAT to MP4 easily? Tipard Video Converter Ultimate is a versatile DAT-to-MP4 converter that lets you convert 4K videos, rip any DVD to various video formats, and even edit your video files with ease.

Step 1Download and install Tipard Video Converter Ultimate, and then launch this DAT to MP4 converter program on your computer. You can choose the Converter menu and click the Add button to load the DAT files of your old VCD you want to convert into the program.

Step 2Click the Output Format dropdown button to select an MP4 foramt. It enables you to convert VCD DAT to MP4 4K or 1080P HD video. Click the Customize Profile, you can tweak the video codec, frame rate, video bitrate, sample rate, and other parameters.

Step 3When you want to split the DAT movies from the VCD into different clips, you can click the Clip button to split the video into parts, copy and paste the different segments, or even merge the DAT files within the VCD into a whole one. The video merger feature is next to the Convert All button.

Step 4After that, you can choose the destination folder from the Save to menu. Click the Convert All button to convert DAT files to MP4 movies. The GPU acceleration can let you convert the DAT video at 120X faster than other video converters.

2. VLC Media Player

Want to convert DAT file to MP4 for free? VLC is definitely a good choice. VLC can convert DAT to MP4 video with HEVC or H.264 video codec, offering high video quality. You can also customize the MP4 video to upscale the resolution to 1080p. However, the customization feature is difficult to find and use. Check the guide below to use VLC to convert DAT to MP4 format.

Step 1Download, install, and launch VLC Media Player on your computer.

Step 2Click the Media button on the top left side, and then select Convert / Save button to import your DAT file.

Step 3Click the Add button on the new window to select your DAT video file. Then, click the Convert / Save button to go on.

Step 4Click the Profile dropdown button to select an MP4 format. Then, click the Browse button to select a folder for your upcoming MP4 file. Finally, click the Start button to convert DAT to MP4 easily using VLC.

3. HandBrake

HandBrake is a good choice for you to convert DAT to MP4. It can load VCD disc, extract the .dat file, and then convert it to MP4 videos. HandBrake also offers very flexible customization features - you can change video and audio codecs, adjust resolution, and even rearrange the chapters and subtitles. It's also a free and open-source video converter. If you want to know how to convert DAT to MP4 in HandBrake, please see the guide below.

Step 1Download, install, and launch HandBrake on your computer. Click the File button to import your DAT file.

Step 2Click the Format button to select MP4 as the output format. Usually the output format is MP4 by default. You can also select Video and Audio tabs to adjust the codecs, resolution, bitrate, and more settings.

Step 3Click the Browse button to select a destination folder for your MP4 file. Finally, you just need to click the Start Encode button to convert DAT to MP4 in HandBrake.

4. OpenShot Video Editor

OpenShot is a powerful video editor that can help you seamlessly convert DAT to MP4 in good video quality. It also offers many powerful and easy-to-use video editing features, like trim, clip, rotate, filter, etc. You can convert DAT to MP4 while upscaling the video resolution.

Step 1Launch OpenShot Video Editor on your computer. Click the File button on the top left, then directly select Import Files to import your DAT video to OpenShot Video Editor.

Step 2Directly drag and drop your .dat video to the timeline at bottom. Put the video at the beginning of the timeline.

Step 3Click the File button on the top left side, and select Export Project button. Then, slect Export Video.

Step 4On the popup window, click the Browse button to select a path folder for your video. Click the Targe dropdown button to select MP4 as the output format. Finally, click the Export Video button to convert the DAT video to MP4 format.

5. Shutter Encoder

Shutter Encoder is an open-source and professional video encoder. Converting DAT to MP4 is no big deal for Shutter Encoder. It can change the video and audio codecs of your DAT file, and then change the container from DAT to MP4 easily. You can choose H.264, HEVC, or AV1. You can also upscale the video resolution and adjust frame rate. Shutter Encoder makes converting DAT to MP4 very easy. You can see the steps below to do that.

Step 1Download Shutter Encoder from its official website. Then, install and launch it. Click the Browse button to import your .dat video file.

Step 2Click the dropdown button under Choose function. Then, select an video codec under Output codecs, like H.265. You can see the default output format is set .mp4.

Step 3Click the Start function button to convert .dat video to MP4 quickly.

6. Adobe Media Encoder

Those professional video converter have great capability of encoding a video. Adobe Media Encoder supports a great number of video and audio codecs. So, you can use it to encode DAT to MP4. You can take advantage of free trials of Adobe Media Encoder to convert videos. See the guide below to convet .dat to MP4 easily.

Step 1Download, install, and launch Adobe Media Encoder on your computer. Click the File button in the top left side, and then select Add Source to import your .dat video to this program.

Step 2Click the dropdown button under Format to select a video codec, such as H.264, which is supported by MP4.

Step 3Click the Start Queue button (in green color) on the top right side to export your video. Click the Format button to select MP4. Then, click the OK button to convert .dat video to MP4 in Adobe Media Encoder.

7. Freemake Video Converter

How can you convert DAT file to MP4 easily? Freemake Video Converter can help. It offers a clean and understandable interface with simple workflow for you to encode videos. You can follow the on-screen prompt and guide to convert DAT video to MP4 quickly. Check the simple tutorial below to re-encode .dat to .mp4.

Step 1Launch Freemake Video Converter on your computer. Click the Video button on the top side to add your .dat videos. You can import multiple DAT videos.

Step 2Select to MP4 at bottom. This default MP4 format has good presets that can offer high video and audio quality.

Step 3Finally, click the Convert button to change DAT files to MP4 easily with Freemake Video Converter.

8. FFmpeg

FFmpeg is a free and open-source video converter based on command line. You can use Command Prompt on Windows or Terminal on Mac to convert .dat to MP4. Simply converting video format is not difficult for even beginnerrs. The only precondition is you should well install FFmpeg on your computer and put the ffmpeg.exe file with your .dat video in the same folder. Now, check the

Step 1Locate the folder that includes your DAT video and ffmpeg.exe file, and then type cmd (Command Prompt). Then, hit the Enter button on your keyboard.

Step 2Input the following command:

ffmpeg -i input.dat -c:v libx264 -c:a aac output.mp4

Here, input is the file name of your DAT video, and output is the upcomping MP4 file's name that you can rename to anything yo uwant.

Step 3Finally, just hit the Enter button on your keyboard to easily convert (re-encode) DAT to MP4. It's very recommended to re-encode the .dat video to morden codecs like H.264 OR HEVC for compatibility.

9. FreeConvert

If you want to convert DAT video to MP4 free online, FreeConvert is your good choice. It can easily convert videos with or without re-encoding. You can change DAT to H.264 or HEVC codecs, for they are compatible with modern players and devices. Then, you can watch the video seamlessly in high resolution and definition.

Step 1Go to the official webpage of FreeConvert. CLick the Choose Files button to upload your DAT videos. You can add multiple DAT files.

Step 2You can click the Advanced Options button to change the video codec to H.264 or H.265. Then, upscale the video resolution to 1080p or higher. Click the Apply Settings button to confirm.

Step 3Finally, just click the Convert button to quickly convert DAT video to MP4 format free online.

10. ONLINE-CONVERT

ONLINE-CONVERT is a popular online converter tool. It can convert many types of files, like video, audio, image, etc. It can easily convert DAT video to MP4 with re-encoding features. You can change the codecs and resolution to a higher level so that you can obtain a high-quality video. It's an easy-to-use and powerful online tool to convert DAT to MP4 for free.

Step 1Go to the official webpage of ONLINE-CONVERT Convert video to MP4. CLick the Choose File button to upload your DAT video file.

Step 2Then, you can click the Settings button to select a video preset. You can enhance your DAT video by selecting a 1920*1080 preset.

Step 3When all is set, click the START button to convert DAT to MP4 format free online. Then, you can download the MP4 video to your device.

11. 123APPS Video Converter

123APPS Video Converter is not popular, but it's reeally powerful and convenient. It has a clean interface with simple workflow. You can follow the on-screen prompts to convert DAT to MP4 easily free online. You can also adjust the video codec to HEVC and upscale the video resolution. If you want a simple and reliable DAT to MP4 converter, 123APPS Video Converter is a good choice.

Step 1Visit the 123APPS Video Converter official webpage. Click the Choose File button to upload your DAT video to this online video converter.

Step 2Maybe the output video format is MP4 by default. You can also manually select MP4.

Step 3You can also click the Settings button to adjust the video codec. You can select from H.264, H.265, and MPEG-4. Click the Resolution dropdown button to select a desired resolution.

Step 4Finally, click the Convert button to change DAT file to MP4 free online. Then, download the video to your device.

12. CloudConvert

CloudConvert is popular, powerful, and ad-free. It offers a clean interface for your to convert DAT file to MP4 free online. You can easily and quickly do video conversion with great customization. You can adjust the video resolution, codec, frame rate, and more. See the guide below to learn how to convert DAT to MP4 easily.

Step 1Go to the CloudConvert official website. Click the Select File button to upload your DAT video file.

Step 2Click the Convert to dropdown button to select MP4 as the output format. After that, you can click the Options button to change the video codec to x264, x265, or AV1. You can also upscale the resolution and adjust resolution and frame rate. Click the Okay button to save your adjustment.

Step 3Finally, click the Convert button to convert DAT to MP4 free online. Then, you can download the converted MP4 video to your device.

Part 3. FAQs about DAT Video