There is hardly any Internet user on this planet who has not used YouTube. Millions of videos and there have to be some to which you took a liking to. I am myself, an avid fan of movie and game trailers and frequent the site for the same. However, sadly enough, videos are quite often taken off of YouTube due to various reasons (flagged as inappropriate, copyright infringement etc.) You wouldnât want this to happen to your favorite video, would you? So here are 10 simple ways to download YouTube videos to your PC.
1. Downloader9:
This is an online, fast, easy and free web based video download service. In addition to YouTube, it supports video download from DailyMotion, MySpace and MetaCafe. Simply paste the video URL onto this site and it will automatically generate a download link for a FLV file which you will have to rename to something.flv. You must also have a FLV player to play the videos later.
2. KeepVid:
YouTube recently changed its storage scripts thereby rendering countless web based downloading services useless. The KeepVid site however keeps updating (the last was March 9, 2011). It also makes an effort of keeping itself ad-free so there are no irritating pop-ups. Just paste the video URL from YouTube (also supports other video sites as well) and you will be given the option to either download it in FLV or MP4 formats. KeepVid has also launched a free desktop app – be sure to check it out too.
3. Easy YouTube Video Downloader:
This is exclusively for Firefox users and is meant to be a one-click download answer. Once this add-on is installed it plants a download button right onto the YouTube interface. Users can choose between 3GP, FLV and MP4 formats and you can also download in HD if the option is available.
4. VideoDownloadX:
This web based video downloading service is completely free and quite fast, but just like Downloader9, you will have to rename the file to something.flv and you will have to have a FLV player. Another thing to be wary about is that this site is a virtual minefield of ads, so be careful not to click on a pop-up.
5. VideoGetting:
Another free web based service that allows users to download is via pasting video URLs. The plus point of this site is that it will let users convert the video into a wide variety of formats like WMV, MP3, MP4, MOV, 3GP, MPEG, MPG, and AVI. To use its excellent conversion feature, the only thing you will have to bear with, are the incessant pop-ups and ads.
6. Orbit Downloader:
This is a free windows application. In addition to being an efficient download manager, Orbit downloader empowers users to download videos from YouTube and other popular video sites. It supports RMTP, so it is quite fast. In addition, Orbit will also allow you to capture streaming music from sites like Pandora, Last.fm, Myspace and IMEEM etc and save them as MP3 files.
7. VDownloader:
Of the many free YouTube video download softwares; this has to be the most versatile. Not only does it support downloading from YouTube, DailyMotion, MetaCafe and other popular sites, but also from quite a few (cough!) adult sites as well. You can search for video tags from the application itself and can download the videos to AVI, MPG, MPEG, MP4, 3GP, SVCD, FLV, MP3, VCD, M4U formats.
8. VideoSlurp:
One of the few video downloads freeware out there that has in-built browser support. Simply open the link in its inbuilt browser and then download the video with one simple click. It also has a web based service.
9. RealPlayer:
RealPlayer has a browser integration feature which adds a âDownload the Videoâ button over YouTube videos. Install RealPlayer (make sure your browser is not running). Once setup is complete open up the video, you want to download, in your browser and select a resolution (240p, 360p, 480p etc) and then click on the download button – simple and fast.
10. YouTube Downloader:
This is the easiest video downloading software in my opinion. Its URL is so simple that even newbie will be able to use it like experts! Simply paste the video URL in the first box and select the format in which you want the video to be saved – download and convert in one go! It offers a wide variety of video formats. The only downside is that it only supports YouTube videos.
