There is nothing worse than buying an expensive DVD or Blu-ray disc of your favourite movie or TV show, only to damage it down the line. And while Blu-rays are less susceptible to damage with age, DVDs will get scratched to a point where you simply can't use them anymore. One of the best practices you can have is to create backups of physical disc that you own -- and enjoy viewing the digital copies while keeping the originals safe.

DVDFab Copy Suite ($90 for a 1-year license) for Windows promises to make the whole process simpler. From the makers of DVDFab Media Player 2, the suite includes DVDFab's DVD Copy and Blu-ray Copy software, which let you copy or clone DVD and Blu-ray to your hard drive as ISO files, movie folders, or burn them to blank DVD/Blu-ray discs.

We're giving away ten 1-year licenses for DVDFab Copy Suite (valued at $900!). Continue reading to find out more about what this program can do, then join the competition to win a free copy!

Installation

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Activation

It's pretty easy to set up the Copy Suite. You will be given a key, which you have to register at the Member Center on DVDFab's website. You'll only have to download one setup file for both DVD Copy and Blu-ray Copy. Run it and follow the on-screen instructions to install the program. When it prompts you for your registration ID, key in the details you got online and you're good to go.

Choose Your Task

DVDFab9-splashscreen

The splash screen of Copy Suite offers four basic options: copy, rip, convert or create. This way, you can quickly select the task you want, but if you change your mind later, don't worry—these are all available as tabs in the program's main window.

The ripper is only available as a trial version, but you can skip that and use some easy and quick DVD rippers for Windows.

Copy

You can copy a disc to several output formats, whether it's DVD-5, DVD-9. BD-5, BD-9, BD-25 or BD-50 -- and you can save it as an ISO too. Of course, it's best to do a 1:1 copy so that the picture quality stays optimal, but if you want a smaller-sized disc, DVDFab will compress the file according to your choices.

There are six sub-tasks in the Copy function:

Full Disc

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Copy-FullDisc 1

This is the quick and simple option. As the name suggests, this performs a full backup of your DVD or Blu-ray disc. You can choose the source (ISO or optical disc drive), rename the volume label, copy just the DVD video or include non-DVD files, select audio, remove menus and play the titles continuously, and remove "annoying PGCs (like FBI warnings)".

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Copy-FullDisc 2

Main Movie

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Copy-MainMovie

Automatically skips trailers, interviews and other extras on the DVD to smartly pick up only the main film for you to copy.

Customize

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Copy-Customize

This is for advanced users who want to select exactly which aspects they want to copy. Divided by title, play time, chapter, audio and subtitle; you should have a pretty clear idea of which parts you want to copy and those that you want to skip. The Preview pane at the side will show you selections so you can be sure.

Split

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Copy-Split

Want to copy a BD-25 on three BD-9 discs? The Split option shows you two columns for each disc's chapters, and all you have to do is select the arrangement. Of course, DVDFab already does it by default, but this is just in case feel like customizing.

Merge

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Copy-Merge

If you have multiple sources and want to merge into one DVD, this is the easiest way to do it.

Clone/Burn

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Copy-CloneBurn

Want to create an exact 1:1 replica of the original source? It doesn't get simpler than this option.

Converter

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Converter-Crop

The Converter lets you convert files on your hard drive into different file formats. If your DVD or Blu-ray is encrypted -- and chances are, it is -- the converter won't work. I tried DVDs from back in 2000 and even those have encryption, so you won't have much luck there.

But for converting unencrypted files into different formats, the Converter is pretty nifty. The cool feature is that it offers to let you choose the device you want to convert it for, such as an iPhone or the Kindle Fire, saving you the trouble of choosing the right resolution or other settings. Just find your device and you're done.

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Converter-Advanced-Settings

Of course, if you want advanced options, you can get that too, including the video and audio codecs, frame rate, sample rate, resolution, bit rate, encoding method, video quality, volume, subtitles, and channels. Set it up the way you want and hit the button to start encoding. You can also resize or crop your videos to your liking.

Creator

DVDFab-9-Copy-Suite-Creator-Menu-Frames

If you have a bunch of video files and want to make a DVD or Blu-ray, the Creator tab will let you do that. Just add your files (it supported every format I tried, from HD MKVs to tiny RMVBs) and choose the length of the disc -- it's set to DVD-5 by default.

There's also a built-in menu creator with a few templates, and a simple drag-and-drop interface to get things done. I didn't care much for the templates though, they look either gaudy or outdated.

Worth It?

At $90 for a 1-year license, it's a tad expensive, but the number of options that DVDFab Copy Suite provides and smartly executes is something that I haven't seen any of the freeware programs offer. So there's no doubting the merit of paying for this software if you want a good disc copying solution.

How do I win a copy of DVDFab Copy Suite?

You may enter by submitting your name and email address. You'll receive one entry simply by doing so.

After that, you'll also be offered various methods to earn additional entries. They range from sharing a link to this giveaway on social networks; to commenting or visiting a specific page. The more you participate, the higher your chances of winning! You will receive 5 additional entries into the giveaway for every successful referral via your shared links.

This giveaway begins now and ends Friday, November 29. The winners will be selected at random and informed via email.

The Winners

  • Randy Luczak
  • Spy Gupta
  • Aryan Gupta
  • Phil Beloma
  • Brain Law
  • Scott Hunt
  • Roberto Rother
  • William Brown
  • Eng Kwan Yeo
  • Wraye Leskiw

Congratulations! If you were selected as a winner, you would have received your license via email from jackson@makeuseof.com. If you require any assistance, please get in touch with Jackson Chung before December 21. Enquires beyond this date will not be entertained.

Submit your apps and software to be reviewed. Contact Jackson Chung for further details.