Popular video transcoder HandBrake hits version 1.0 after 13 years

HandBrake is celebrating a new milestone this week, as an update released over the Christmas holiday brought the transcoding program to version 1.0. That's a big enough reason for celebration and champagne all its own, but what makes this release more important for the Handbrake team is that it took 13 years to reach this point. Yes, HandBrake was initially released in August 2003.

That's one whopper of a development cycle, but in that time, Handbrake has become one of the most popular free transcoders around. That popularity seems likely to increase now that version 1.0 is out there. Appropriately, the changelog is rather long, with HandBrake getting a slew of new features in this update.

The HandBrake team says they have "completely overhauled the official presets" with this release. If you're a long time HandBrake user and that makes you feel a little nervous, never fear: the official presets that were available in previous versions are still there and can be found under the program's new "Legacy" section.

Those older presets need to make room for new general use presets that should ensure a higher level of broad compatibility. There are new device presets to use as well, offering greater compatibility with modern smartphones and tablets. Finally, users can look forward to new web and Matroska presets, which include VP9 video encoding and Opus audio.

These presets join a number of usability updates across all versions of HandBrake – Windows, Mac, and Linux. The full changelog can be found through the source link below, as can a download link for those of you interested in trying out HandBrake. The developers behind HandBrake are quick to point out that their website is the only official source for HandBrake downloads, so keep that in mind if you're looking to begin using the program.

SOURCE: HandBrake