Review: Top 3 H.265/HEVC Encoding and Decoding Tools

2015 will be a big year for H.265 on your home computer. The H.265 format, often called HEVC is being adopted as the new standard, particularly at the commercial level, and video creators/editors are slowly but surely being required to use it- especially for a little thing called 4K video. If you decide to spring for H.265, take a look at the top 3 H.265/HEVC encoder and decoder, which can help you encode/decode H.265 files in real time quickly and reliably.

Read More:
Top 5 Free Video Converter for Mac
Top 5 Free Video Converter for Windows
Top 4 Best MXF Converters for Mac

How to encode your own HEVC video?

Encoding with HEVC is, as explained, much more demanding than other video codecs. You'll likely find that your videos take many times longer than before, and real-time encoding is virtually unheard of with home PCs. With that said, switching from an older standard to H.265/HEVC can substantially reduce the file size of your video library. It can also make streaming between devices easier.

What can decode HEVC video?

Any computer can decode H.265 using software (in theory, at least). All that's mandatory is software capable of handling H.265 and a file or stream encoded in it. However, most systems that might choke on decoding a 4K HEVC stream or file can't output 4K.

Top 3 H.265/HEVC Encoder and Decoder

Top 1. Brorsoft Video Converter (Windows/Mac)

Among all available H.265 video converters in the market, Brorsoft Video Converter claims one of the top H.265 encoders. It is an all-in-one H.265 decoder, encoder, converter and player. Not only can it allow people to convert H.265 to common video files, but also convert SD/HD videos (AVCHD, M2TS, MTS, MKV, H.264, MP4, AVI, TS, MOD, TOD, WMV, MOV, MPEG, etc.) to H.265 with several mouse clicks. Besides, the program also supports various professional encoders, Apple Intermediate Codec, ProRes and DNxHD, DVCPRO, HDV- ensuring the best results when editing with iMovie, Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere, Avid Media Composer or Sony Vegas, respectively. In a word, Brorsoft Video Converter is such an easy to use operation program that can hold all the video formats also with zero quality loss.

Main Features:

- Acting as the H.265 Encoder, Brorsoft Video Converter enables to encode all variety of video files including MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV, ASF, MPG, MKV, VOB, FLV, AVCHD, MXF, MOD, TOD, TS, WTV and etc to H.265.
- As the H.265 Decoder, it supports decoding H.265 to other video format like MP4, AVI or directly convert H.265 video to audio format like MP3, WAV, AAC, WMA, AIFF, FLAC, RA, AU, DTS and etc.
- Playing the role as the H.265 Player, Brorsoft H.265 Converter can directly play H.265 video files without format conversion in the preview window after loaded in.
- As the H.265 Editor, it can edit H.265 videos like merge H.265 files into one, crop H.265, trim H.265, rotate H.265 video, add subtitles/watermark to HEVC, adjust the H.265 parameter like bitrates, frame rate, aspect ratio, audio volume and etc.

(Note: Click here for OS X 10.5)

Top 2. HandBrake

HandBrake is also an encoding tool available for users who like to choose the best parts of other programs. It is open source, and the latest 0.10 version upgrades to H.265 compatibility. In fact, it even supports x265 directly, as well as features from linbpx, VP8, and other sources- giving you the option to mix and match your open source cereals in the same big bowl. It is also worth noting that HandBrake is one of those useful options that can also work on Mac OS X and Ubuntu, so it's a bit more crossplatform than other tools.

Note: HandBrake is busy updating all its components and smoothing out the bumps in the road, but it's a work in progress, so you may not see the same results you would in something like Brorsoft.

Top 3. Cinemartin Cinec

Cinemartin Cinec is a multi video encoder for windows. It is proud to release a plugin for various NLE editors, initially for Adobe Premiere Pro, that allow users to export sequence timeline to all versions of prores and to HEVC H.265. You can convert videos from several video formats. Quality is the top of the software, that accommodates fast processing capabilities, featured in a software that allow multiple CPU cores to be dedicated to encode. With the highest quality as professionals demand, cinec also allows, in a simple way, Cut or split videos instantly with or without encode (no re-encode).

Notes: Based on our testing and our users' feedback, this H.265 encoder/decoder is not so stable when working the H.265 videos. On the hand, the video quality seems to be a little influenced with the output ones.