- The AVI format, short for Audio video interleave, was first developed by Microsoft in the early 1990s. The AVI file format is heavily used on PCs, but can't be used on a Mac computer. Even as for Apple's QuickTime media player, unfortunately, the free version of QuickTime is not compatible with all types of AVI video files on Mac.
- The most common reason for a MOV file not being compatible with QuickTime is the codec used to encode the audio and video files during compression. If the codecs aren’t compatible, the QuickTime player won’t open the.mov file.
- Part 1: Compatible Video/Audio Formats for QuickTime Player. QuickTime supports a lot of media formats and codecs, with many more coming all the time. Take a look at the following video and audio formats and codecs list according to Apple official page. QuickTime Movie (.mov), MPEG-4 (.mp4,.m4v), MPEG-2 (OS X Lion or later), MPEG-1, 3GPP.
QuickTime- an Apple’s patented media player distributed over Mac and Windows systems (free basic edition). QuickTime player supports Movie (.mov), MPEG-4(.mp4, .m4v), MPEG-2 (OS X Lion or later), MPEG-1, 3GPP, 3GPP2, AVCHD (OS X Mountain Lion or later), AVI (Motion JPEG only), and DV video formats.
iTunes Audio (.m4a, .m4b, .m4p), MP3, Core Audio (.caf), AIFF, AU, SD2, WAV, SND, and AMR audio files.
When you import media or open a library in iMovie 10.1.11 or later on a Mac with macOS Mojave, a window appears that lists incompatible media files in your library. To convert incompatible media files immediately, click Convert in the window. IMovie creates copies of the media files in the H.264 format. The original files are moved to an iMovie.
But sometimes, you can’t open your file in QuickTime Player. This might be due to codec issue, software update, filename inaccuracy or corruption.
Codec Issue:
All digital videos are the outcome of compression. During compression, multiple media streams (like audio and video) are adjoined using an algorithm called codec, that deciphers digital info into a readable format.
Once the media is processed via codecs, they are consequently combined into a single file via multimedia container. If your file failed to open in QuickTime player, then it is probable that the computer is not prepared to read the file’s codec.
You can find-out the codec of an opened file in Window tab of QuickTime player menu by selecting Show Movie Inspector. All media’s codecs will be listed under the Format section.
So, activate the required codec support for QuickTime in order to play the file which is not opening. Some programs you try to do this are MPEG-2 Playback Component, DivX, Xvid, Autodesk etc.
These are the QuickTime supported codec:
Video Codec: MPEG-2 (OS X Lion or later), MPEG-4 (Part 2), H.264, H.263, H.261
Audio Codec: AAC (MPEG-4 Audio), HE-AAC, Apple Lossless, MP3
Software Issue:
If QuickTime fails to open your file, then it seems your application installation is outdated or incompatible. The QuickTime player may be too old and thus it is not able to read the file. So, update your player first.
But, when it comes to updating the QuickTime version, it is not obligatory to uninstall it completely then, re-install. All you need to do is just switch to Help tab on the QuickTime player window and choose Update Existing Software. Follow on-screen instructions and complete the update process.
Filename Inaccuracy:
File extension tells what type of data is stored in a file. It also specifies which type of player should be used to open the file. But, file extensions are prone to modification. They can be easily edited.
As a result, your QuickTime player fails to open the file. So, analyze the file which you cannot open in QuickTime and confirm if it has the right extension. You can use free tools like MediaInfo, FileAlyzer, etc. for this purpose.
File Corruption:
If your file fails to load in other media players apart from QuickTime (like iTunes, VLC, etc.), then it seems the file is corrupted.
So, repair you file that you are trying to open in QuickTime with the help of an efficient repair tool. If it is a QuickTime MOV file, MP4 file or MOV file then try Yodot MOV Repair. This is the effective fix for all corrupted, inaccessible, damaged, error showing and non-playing videos. Even you can repair a non-playing AVI, XVID, and DIVX video files with the help of Yodot.
Apple apps such as QuickTime Player, Photos, and Keynote work with many kinds of audio and video formats. Some apps prefer specific formats, but QuickTime movie files (.mov), most MPEG files (.mp4, .m4v, .m4a, .mp3, .mpg), some AVI and WAV files, and many other formats usually work in most apps without additional software.
Older or specialized media formats might not work in your app, because the format requires software designed to support it. If that happens, your app won't open the file or won't play back its audio or video.
How to search for an app that works with your file
You might already have an app that supports the format of your file. If you don't know which of your installed apps to try, your Mac might be able to suggest one:
- Control-click (or right-click) the file in the Finder.
- From the shortcut menu that opens, choose Open With. You should see a submenu listing all of the other installed apps that your Mac thinks might be able to open the file.
If none of your installed apps can open the file, search the Internet or Mac App Store for apps that can play or convert the file:
- Include the name of the media format in your search. To find the format, select the file and press Command-I to open an Info window. The format might appear after the label Kind, such as ”Kind: Matroska Video File.”
- Include the filename extension in your search. The extension is the letters shown at the end of the file's name, such as .avi,.wmv, or .mkv.
Avi Not Compatible With Quicktime Player
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Avi File Not Compatible With Quicktime
- QuickTime Player (version 10.0 and later) in OS X Mavericks through macOS Mojave converts legacy media files that use certain older or third-party compression formats.
- Learn about incompatible media in Final Cut Pro and iMovie.