Neocodec Quickstart — convert, record or export frames for AI tools

00

Install and open

1

Install

Drag Neocodec.app into your Applications folder.

2

Open it once

First launch registers eight Quick Actions with Finder: seven conversion presets plus a separate Transcribe action.

3

Drop a video

Media conversion runs on your Mac using bundled ffmpeg helpers. Choose a preset, then add a video or folder.

01

The window

The friendliest path: pick a preset, drop your files, done. Drop a whole folder and Neocodec queues every video inside it.

Neocodec

H.264H.264 ½ GIF ⅓GIF AV1WebM · Efficient (VP9) H.264 ⚡

Drop videos or folders here converted with "MP4 · Compatible (H.264)", saved next to the original

● holiday-clip.mp4 — MP4 · Compatible (H.264) Completed · Show in Finder

①Preset chips — one click picks the output format. The highlighted chip is what your next drop converts to.
②Drop zone — drag in one video, twenty videos, or a whole folder. Each file becomes a queue row with live progress.
③Result row — the size delta at a glance, an ⓘ metadata inspector, and Show in Finder. Collision-safe naming keeps existing files intact.

Tune it later, safely. Settings lets you edit any preset — quality, scale, frame rate — with a one-click revert to factory. The optional Trim fields (e.g. 0:02 – 0:08) apply to everything you queue, and invalid ranges flag red before any conversion starts. You can also create custom presets; only the seven built-ins have Finder Quick Actions.

Choose where results go. Next to source is the default. Settings can instead use a persistent Custom folder or Ask each time when a conversion begins.

Which preset should I pick?

Preset	Best for	Good to know
MP4 · Compatible (H.264)	General MP4 output.	The default full-size H.264 preset.
MP4 · Compatible (H.264, ½ size)	Reduced-dimension MP4 output.	Uses H.264 and halves the source dimensions.
GIF · Small (⅓ size)	Compact silent loops.	Scales dimensions to one third.
GIF · Full size	Full-dimension silent loops.	Preserves source dimensions within the preset's GIF settings.
MP4 · Smallest (AV1)	AV1 in an MP4 container.	Encoding and playback support vary by destination, so check the target environment.
WebM · Efficient (VP9)	VP9 video with Opus audio.	A WebM alternative for compatible browsers and applications.
MP4 · Fast (H.264 hardware)	Hardware-assisted H.264.	Uses VideoToolbox where supported by the Mac.

▶ WATCH THE APP DEMO (0:48)

02

The right-click

The seven built-in conversion presets live in Finder's Quick Actions menu beside a separate Transcribe action. Select one video or a multi-selection and choose the job you want.

①Select any video file in Finder — or a multi-selection; every selected file gets converted.
②Right-click → Quick Actions — seven conversion actions and the separate Transcribe action are listed.
③Pick a preset — the converted file appears beside each original a moment later. Batch a shoot's worth of clips in one gesture.

Scale choices carry into Finder. Edit a built-in under Settings ▸ Presets and its existing Quick Action uses the saved Original, Half, Third, 360p, 480p, 720p, 1080p, Fit width, or Fit height setting. Scaling preserves the source aspect ratio. The Finder menu retains seven preset actions; scale choices do not create additional entries, and Transcribe remains separate.

Transcription is opt-in and is not on-device conversion. It stays off until you save your own OpenRouter API key and explicitly approve uploads. Depending on the selected model, Neocodec sends extracted audio—or the whole video for video-capable models—to OpenRouter and the third-party model provider. Conversion presets continue to run on your Mac.

Menu missing? Launch Neocodec once — it re-registers the Quick Actions automatically. If Finder still shows a stale menu, relaunch Finder (⌥-right-click its Dock icon → Relaunch). Custom presets stay in the app and CLI; they do not create additional Finder entries.

▶ WATCH THE QUICK ACTIONS DEMO (0:31)

03

The terminal

The same engine ships as a command-line tool inside the app. Output lands next to the source by default; add --output-dir for a chosen folder.

Terminal — zsh

~/Demo % neocodec convert --preset webm-vp9 --output-dir ./Converted demo-source.mp4

converting demo-source.mp4...

demo-source.mp4 [■■■■■■■■■■■■——————] 74%

~/Demo % neocodec presets

ID              NAME                                      FORMAT
mp4-h264        MP4 · Compatible (H.264)                  H.264
mp4-h264-half   MP4 · Compatible (H.264, ½ size)          H.264
gif-small       GIF · Small (⅓ size)                      GIF
gif-full        GIF · Full size                           GIF
mp4-av1         MP4 · Smallest (AV1)                      AV1
webm-vp9        WebM · Efficient (VP9)                    VP9
mp4-h264-vt     MP4 · Fast (H.264 hardware)               H.264 hardware

--presetChoose a built-in or custom preset — saved built-in edits, including 360p, 480p, 720p, and 1080p scaling, are used automatically. Run neocodec presets to list the current inventory, or add --json for structured output.
--qualityOverrides the selected preset's quality setting. The scale differs by encoder; inspect neocodec presets --json before scripting an override.
--scaleOverride the preset with original, half, third, standard-height fits such as fit-height:360, fit-height:480, fit-height:720, or fit-height:1080, and exact fits like fit-width:1280. Fit-width and fit-height preserve the source aspect ratio.
--fpsCap the output frame rate, or set the frame rate used for GIF output.
--trim-start / --trim-endCut to a range before converting, e.g. --trim-start 0:05 --trim-end 0:20 — applied to every input in the run.
--output-dirSend outputs to a specific folder instead of next to each source file.

Install the command once: open Settings ▸ General ▸ Command-line tool and click Install. Neocodec links ~/.local/bin/neocodec and adds that directory to your shell configuration when needed. Open a new Terminal window, or use the source command shown in Settings. If shell setup fails, follow the displayed instructions. Install for all users… is also available with macOS authentication. The installer refuses to replace an unrelated file or link.

▶ WATCH THE CLI DEMO (0:31)

Record your screen

New in Neocodec 1.1. Start a recording in the app, then use the saved clip in your conversion workflow.

1

Choose a source

Open File > Record Screen… or press Command-Shift-R. Choose Display, Window, App or Area. Allow macOS screen recording access if asked; you may need to reopen Neocodec and select the source again.

2

Check audio and record

System audio and microphone start off on first use, and later choices are remembered. Check both, press Record, and wait for Recording. Pause and resume when needed.

3

Save and use the clip

Press Stop and wait for Recording saved. Play the H.264 MP4, or prepare a trim or conversion. Recordings default to Movies/Neocodec Recordings.

EXPLORE SCREEN RECORDING →

Give a video to an AI tool

New in Neocodec 1.2. Many AI tools can't watch video but can read images. Frames turns a video into still images where the screen changed, so a tool can follow what happened.

1

Choose Frames

Select Frames under Export action, then drop a video. With Frames already selected the export starts straight away; otherwise add your videos and click Export frames.

2

Get a frames folder

A new folder, named after the video with -frames added, holds still images where the screen changed, up to one for every 5 seconds of video (from 24 to 1,000), contact sheets that show them at a glance, and a frames.json list of times and reasons.

3

Hand it to your AI tool

The finished row reads like 24 frames · 1280×778 · JPEG · 412 KB. Click Copy path and paste it into an AI tool that can open images. Use Show in Finder to look yourself.

Terminal — zsh

~/Demo % neocodec frames --json -q -o ./frames -- checkout-bug.mov

Saved 24 frames (changes) to ./frames/checkout-bug-frames

{"contactSheets":[{"file":"contact-sheet.jpg","firstFrame":1,"lastFrame":24}],
 "frames":[{"file":"frame-001-0.000s.jpg","reason":"first","time":0}, …]}

--max-framesKeep more or fewer frames (2–1,000). By default it keeps up to one for every 5 seconds, at least 24.
--max-sizeMake text easier to read with larger images, e.g. --max-size 1920, together with a trim around the moment that matters.
--trim-start / --trim-endOnly look at part of the video.
--mode intervalSpread frames evenly instead of following screen changes.

Using an AI coding tool? Ask it to run neocodec frames --help and follow its instructions for AI tools. They explain how to call the command, read the list, open only the frames it needs, and treat text in the images as information rather than instructions.

Frames are made on your Mac and nothing is uploaded. The images show whatever was on screen, so treat the folder like the recording. An AI tool you give them to follows its own terms.

06

Why it holds up

Neocodec is a native Swift macOS app around pinned, bundled media helpers. Media conversion remains on-device. Atomic, collision-safe output protects existing files while you compare presets, and output destinations remain configurable. Download Neocodec for a full-feature 14-day trial, or return to the product page for one-time purchase details.

▶ SEE IT IN ACTION BACK TO THE DEMOS

Get started with Neocodec.

Install and open

Install

Open it once

Drop a video

The window

Which preset should I pick?

The right-click

The terminal

Record your screen

Choose a source

Check audio and record

Save and use the clip

Give a video to an AI tool

Choose Frames

Get a frames folder

Hand it to your AI tool

Why it holds up