Video conversion
Convert AVI to M4V
Updated Jul 2026
AVI is an old Windows video container, and M4V is the format Apple's software expects for video, including on iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. To convert AVI to M4V, open the file in a converter and export it as M4V. Doing this on your own computer means the video never has to travel to someone else's server first.
- Extension
- .avi
- Type
- Video
- Typically
- Legacy Windows video
- Extension
- .m4v
- Type
- Video
- Typically
- iTunes / Apple video
- Compression
- Lossy
Convert AVI to M4V on your own computer. Nothing uploads.
How to convert AVI to M4V
- Open Morphjet and drag in the AVI file, or a whole folder of them, if you're converting more than one.
- Choose M4V as the output format.
- Convert. The M4V file is written right next to the original, and nothing leaves your machine.
AVI vs M4V: what actually changes
| AVI | M4V | |
|---|---|---|
| File size | Large, often uncompressed or lightly compressed | Smaller, modern compression |
| Quality | Can be pristine, depending on the source | Very good, with a small loss from re-encoding |
| Plays on Apple devices and Apple TV | No, not natively | Yes, built for this |
| Plays on Windows and Android | Yes, widely supported | Mostly, though some players need the right codec |
| Chapters and closed captions | Not supported by the format itself | Supported |
| Streams over the web | Poorly, large file sizes slow it down | Better, built for streaming |
When to convert, and when not to
Convert AVI to M4V when you want to watch an old video file on an iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, or in Apple's software, or when you want a much smaller file for storage or sharing.
Keep the AVI original if it's your only archival copy of an irreplaceable recording, since converting to M4V re-encodes the video and can't be perfectly undone.
Why not just use an online converter?
Old home videos and screen recordings in AVI format often sit around for years precisely because converting them online means uploading the whole file to a stranger's server and waiting for it to come back. Morphjet converts AVI to M4V right on your computer, so the video itself never leaves your machine, no matter how personal it is.
Questions
Does converting AVI to M4V lose quality?
Some, but usually not much you'd notice. M4V re-encodes the video, so there's a small one-time quality loss, similar to re-saving any compressed video file.
Will an M4V file play on my iPhone?
Yes. M4V is the video format Apple's own software and devices are built around, so it plays natively on iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV without extra software.
Can I still play the M4V on a Windows PC?
Most modern video players handle M4V fine, since it's built on the same underlying structure as MP4. A few older or more limited players may not recognize it.
Why is my AVI file so much bigger than the M4V version?
AVI is an older container format that often stores video with little or no compression, so files can be large. M4V uses newer compression that shrinks the file while keeping most of the quality.
Can I convert AVI to M4V without uploading the video anywhere?
Yes. A desktop app like Morphjet converts the file locally, so it never has to be uploaded, even for large or long recordings.
Morphjet converts AVI, M4V, and 1,800+ other formats, all on your machine. Launching this July.