How do you convert .mts to .mov for Quicktime and iMovie?

With QuickTime 10.4 (and maybe previous versions) you can open an .MTS and just save (File > Save...) as a Mov. This will just alter the container (re-wrap the video) and will take minutes, not hours.

Quicktime and iMovie supports MOV and MP4 video well. Actually, there are many online apps can do the video conversion for your, such as zamzar, Acethinker Video Converter, mediaconverter, etc. They are totally free, and you don't have to download or install anything. Just add your MTS video into the app and select MOV as output format, run the conversion, and you will get the right video.

I tried this and was about to start a process that would take over two hours. HandBrake did it in 5 minutes. The reason I had to do this was because FinalcCutPro was choking on the .mts clips (which it did recognise, but were too "heavy" to use). You would think that Apple could spend some of its cash and buy some decent converters so that its customers wouldn't have to disrupt their workflows for the most mundane tasks.

hi chris,

mts is really high definition. I used this format for my avchd camcorders. Sure, you can convert mts to mov. it really good for quicktime. I search but no real free tool. And I tried some but the quality or speed is terriable. I guess you need to buy any one which deserves. I cannot remember what I used before. something like http://www.mtstomov.com/

iMovie will directly import the clips and convert them appropriately.

Just put the SD card (or whatever) into the Mac and click the Import button on iMovie's main screen. It will allow you to pick individual clips or all of them to import.

It sounds like you have them independent of their metadata files ("bunch of mts recordings"). If you just have the mts files and they are not packaged up as the , I don't know if iMovie will recognize them or what to use to convert them.

The best solution is to not convert at all and import directrly from your Handycam, you can do this from the File>Import menu. Check to se if your Handycam is supported here https://help.apple.com/imovie/cameras/en/index.html?lang=en_US

NOTE: the following is converting video and is always time intensive so take that into consideration.

For the videos on your disk it is sadly too late for that so you will have to get a converter, I recommend Handbrake http://handbrake.fr . You can convert the file to an mp4 which can handle the same (and better) quality video as mov does and it supports AVCHD video (the same quality as your camra).

Simply select MPEG-4 (mp4v2)

Video Codec: H.264 (this is what is in an MOV file)

and set "constant quality" around 13 or below (the smaller the number the higher the quality but larger file size)

You end up with Bly-Ray quality, iMovie accaptable video.

Thanks!! Handbrake worked expeditiously and excellently!! That was a lifesaver. I was about to pay $50 for software to convert the .mts files.🙂

If you have a copy of the entire contents of your card with all the folder structure (even empty folders), you can use FILE/IMPORT FROM CAMERA ARCHIVE. Navigate to the file containing your archive. In this case you can import mts to imovie dereclty.

If you just have raw .mts files or .m2ts files out of context, iMovie cannot do anything with them. You will need a third party converter. For this, I recommand you the iorgsoft video mate to convert mts to imovie or to quicktime.

You can also try Handbrake. It will convert it to a MP4 file.