Where Can I Download Free Software for Mac Updated

Where Can I Download Free Software for Mac

There's something exciting almost buying a new piece of software, unwrapping the packaging and slipping the disc into your Mac set to install your new goodies. And, of course, the new Mac App Store has made the process of obtaining new software by a digital download merely a few simple mouse clicks.

Whichever method y'all prefer, the biggest drawback is the money you have to hand over. Forking out for your appurtenances is a necessary evil, and the price of things is usually a good indicator of its quality. But the practiced news is it'due south not always that way, especially when it comes to Mac software.

As we will show you lot, there are many apps bachelor for free that take all the polish and avant-garde features you would await from a premium paid-for version, but without the nasty cost tag. In that location are apps that volition make clean up your hard drive or organise your day-to-day activities. Some even piece of work on your iPhone and iPad, too.

We've presented the best ones below – they're all really fantastic and, all-time of all, they're all free.

A number of these applications, while still great equally a costless version, likewise have more fully featured pro versions. So if yous actually bask one, yous tin consider spending the extra coin.

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Best free Mac media tools

1. Boxee Online

TV channels put a lot of their content online for free, but you usually take to go to their websites to find out what's available. Not with Boxee.

This app lets you browse through episodes of shows from sources such every bit YouTube, among many others. It as well pulls in media from your Mac. The interface can exist controlled via the keyboard, an Apple tree remote or the complimentary Boxee app bachelor for iPhone, iPad and iPod bear on.

It'southward a doddle to navigate, enabling you to chop-chop notice sports, movies, music or photos to enjoy on your computer. For amusement on your Mac, Boxee is hard to beat.

2. Vuze

BitTorrent clients have received a bad rap over the years for enabling users to download copyrighted textile for free. Vuze is no different in this respect. That said, downloading via BitTorrent is not illegal and, should you exist accessing legal material, you're fine.

Even ameliorate than that, Vuze will human action as a media player for most formats and even catechumen files for playback on your devices, including iPads and games consoles. Y'all can even stream video from Vuze via Wi-Fi to compatible devices such every bit the Xbox 360, making it more of an ideal media viewing solution than a nuisance to club.

three. Flip4Mac

At that place's been little love lost between Apple and Microsoft over the years, and the aforementioned extends to their media formats. The dreaded .WMV (Windows Media Video) file is the scourge of the Mac OS 10 operating arrangement and will non run natively in QuickTime.

Fortunately, the free Flip4Mac software will eradicate this headache and, once installed, lets yous forget about formats and savour the video y'all are after. The WMV histrion besides allows for Windows Media files to play back in Safari as well to aid you relish a more complete browsing experience. A must-accept install to alleviate format folly.

four. HandBrake

Those looking to bring their moving picture collection into the mod globe should certainly consider HandBrake for all their ripping needs. This simple app can catch a motion picture from DVD and encode it into a variety of formats for playback on your Mac, iPhone or iPad.

Those with the new Apple Television set will likewise be able to create uniform files from their film discs and add them to iTunes without having to fiddle around with DVD players and tons of cases. The app can even retain the chapter selection features and subtitles of your original disc.

While ripping a DVD to your Mac tin take some time (and please respect copyright) if handled correct, the outcome makes accessing your entertainment a great deal easier. The latest version of HandBrake introduces a live preview feature that allows you to check the quality of your rip earlier committing to hours of encoding too. You can also utilize HandBrake to convert video files into different formats.

5. Spotify

Spotify came from out of nowhere and took the music lovers of Europe by tempest. This is streaming music washed right. This service is complimentary to those who can handle an ad every three songs or so. It offers a catalogue of more than 10 million songs of all genres, which stream instantly through the Spotify app.

It tin can as well link to your iTunes library so all of your favourite tracks are in one place. You can log in from multiple Macs using your Spotify account, create playlists, share music with friends and more than.

I of our favourite features is the innovative collaborative playlist, where your friends can add together tracks over the internet for yous to heed to. If you wish, you tin can pay to upgrade Spotify to a premium account, at which betoken you lot become ad-free.

And for £9.99 per month you tin even have the same service on your iPhone with music stored for offline playback.

6. VLC

VLC is one of those apps you can turn to if QuickTime and other media-playing apps won't work with a media format you desire to utilize. Initially, y'all might wonder why yous'll ever need this app, merely if you ever stray beyond the premises of the iTunes Store and download video from another online source, you lot're more than than likely to run across a problem – that is, information technology's not playing properly in iTunes or QuickTime.

Converting the video with HandBrake is e'er an selection, but, to be honest, using VLC is simply quicker. The app can handle DVD playback as well as more obscure formats that crop up from time to time.

Files that are missing pieces or cleaved can nonetheless be played in VLC to the best of its ability and it provides a wealth of codecs to help your Mac handle all kinds of media file formats.

VLC is an application that every Mac user should take installed for when their media won't comport.

Social apps for Mac

7. AddressBookSync

The Address Volume app on your Mac is great for organising contacts and syncing them to your iPhone. Withal, the problem is with so many contacts held, continually adding data and profile pictures tin can go a time-consuming job.

AddressBookSync is an ingenious tool that connects to your Facebook business relationship to pull in your friends' altogether info as well every bit images from their accounts into your Mac'due south Address Book. This is particularly handy for iPhone users with images actualization on screen when a contact is calling.

eight. Adium

The chances are you have an account for more than than one instant messaging customer. With so many bachelor from iChat to Windows Messenger through Google Chat and Yahoo! it's not surprising.

So, do yous exit all of these clients open and consuming memory or exercise you observe an all-in-i solution? If y'all want the latter, Adium is your app.

Compatible with more IM clients than you probably knew existed, Adium combines all your accounts into one easy-to-employ solution and so you can go on in bear upon with all your contacts regardless of the service they are using.

9. Twitter

This is the official Twitter app for Mac. It was launched at the same time as the new Mac App Store, and quickly became the most popular download there. To get it you'll need to have the Mac App Store installed (which ways you'll need to be running Bone Ten 10.6 and have installed the latest system updates).

Unlike other Twitter clients, Twitter offers a very OS X-friendly environment without skimping on the features you need to enjoy your 140-character fix.

A particularly swell feature is that you can view all tweets in a conversation simply by double-clicking on the main tweet. Y'all can also search for trending topics and use multiple accounts within the same app.

Composing a new tweet is now made far easier with the Etch window that floats outside the interface, set for you lot to type your thoughts. If y'all want to add together an image to your tweet simply drag and drib it into the new tweet window.

Y'all can select which image hosting service you use from the Preferences pane, and as well which URL-shortening service the Twitter app volition use. Yous can too get the official Twitter app for iPad and iPhone to complete your Twitter experience wherever you are in the world.

10. Skype

Skype isn't a new service but the way it has developed over the years keeps information technology incredibly useful. The premise is simple, with an internet connection and a copy of the costless software installed, you can talk to anyone on Skype via sound or video chat. And y'all can even swap files, create briefing calls or simply conversation via instant messaging.

For an additional fee, you can add voicemail to your account and even call mobiles and landlines if you wish.

Handy utilities

11. Evernote

Any yous're doing in life at that place are things you need to recollect, be they pictures, notes, websites or sounds. Evernote provides a place to store your ideas, plans and reminders.

Using deject-based storage, the Mac app syncs with your iPhone and iPad, too equally any other computer to keep your notes close to hand whenever you lot demand them. Unique search features let you to dig out anything you've stored and information technology tin can even recognise handwritten docs.

This app not but organises your notes, photos, screenshots and more, but you tin add custom tags to brand things easier to search.

12. r-name

Have y'all e'er had a bunch of files in a folder and so discovered y'all need to rename each one? For a renaming job that comprises more than than 10 files or more it tin become a very dull and repetitive chore.

And that'southward where r-name comes in. It's a simple, free app that allows files and folders to be dropped in and renamed in whatsoever way you lot crave. Ideal for photos or television series, this app will salvage a great deal of fourth dimension.

xiii. Burn

While it's easy to burn a CD or DVD from within Mac Bone X, Burn brings simplicity, as well as avant-garde options to the job. For example, it allows you lot to gear up which file organisation your disc will employ so Windows owners can access files.

Information technology can create audio CDs and MP3 discs, and caters for DVD, VideoCD and DivX discs. An Inspector tool allows you to change settings on your disc such equally file permissions, dates and the icon.

14. Carbon Re-create Cloner

Everyone talks near backing up their figurer files, but how many of u.s. are committed to doing it properly?

Carbon Copy Cloner makes information technology easy to back up your system but to move it to another Mac or larger hard drive without having to reinstall the Bone. It even offers incremental backups, which only updates files that have changed since you last ran the software.

Because this is a free awarding, information technology's an absolute powerhouse for any Mac user who wants security for their system and flexibility for their hardware.