MacX MediaTrans is a macOS application from MacXDVD (Digiarty) for moving and managing content on an iPhone, iPad or iPod from a Mac. It works without going through iTunes or Finder sync. It handles photos, music, videos, books, ringtones, voice memos and podcasts. It converts files that iOS cannot play on the way in and can turn the phone into a storage drive for ordinary Mac files. MediaTrans requires a purchase after its free trial, and a separate Windows edition exists under the WinX name.
Connecting a device and setting up transfers
The iPhone or iPad connects to the Mac by USB cable. Before MacX MediaTrans takes over, the recommended setup disables automatic syncing for iPhones, iPads and iPods in iTunes. iTunes may otherwise try to sync the device at the same moment. In the program’s settings the user picks the destination folder on the Mac where exported items land. The user also chooses whether to replace the existing file or keep a duplicate when an incoming file has the same name.
The main window is split into modules: Photo Transfer, Music Manager, Video, Book, Voice & Ringtone, Flash Drive and an iTunes DRM removal tool. Most of them follow the same pattern. The user selects and exports items going to the Mac. Items going to the device enter a queue, and the program writes them to the device only when the user clicks Sync.
Exporting and adding photos
The photo module lists the device’s albums. The user can pick pictures one by one or with Select All and export them in a batch. This moves an entire camera roll to the Mac without using iCloud. MacX MediaTrans can convert photos shot in Apple’s HEIC format to JPG during export. The user can make this a standing setting or choose it through the export menu for a single job. Saved images can also be written as PNG or BMP, or kept as HEIC.
Transfers work in the other direction as well: Add Photo places Mac images on the device. MacX MediaTrans can also delete photos from the camera roll in bulk. This is the usual way to recover storage after the originals are safely on the Mac.
Music library and playlist editing
Music moves both ways without erasing what is already on the iPhone, which is the main difference from a one-way iTunes sync. In the music manager the user can create playlists, delete tracks and edit tags such as title, artist, album, composer and genre. The user can also apply batch edits across many songs. The program converts audio in formats iOS does not accept, such as FLAC, WMA or WAV, to MP3 or AAC as the user adds it.
Purchased iTunes and Apple Music content goes through a decode step. The user signs in with the Apple account that bought the items, and MacX MediaTrans exports the decoded songs as MP3 files. The same DRM removal tool handles purchased M4V movies and TV episodes, saving them as MP4.
Ringtones, voice memos and podcasts
A built-in ringtone maker opens an audio file in a trimming editor. It lets the user cut out the section to keep and syncs the result to the phone as a ringtone. The Voice & Ringtone module also exports voice memos, podcasts and iTunes U material. It adds podcasts and iTunes U material to the device and deletes voice items singly or in batches.
Video conversion and rotation
The video module exports movies and clips from the device and adds new ones from the Mac. With the auto-convert option on, the program automatically converts files an iPhone cannot play. These include MKV, AVI, MTS, FLV, 3GP, WMV and HEVC files. Hardware acceleration is optional. If auto-convert is off, an unsupported file appears with a black thumbnail and a Convert button for converting it manually. Conversion can also shrink large files to save space on the device. An auto-rotate option corrects clips that were recorded sideways.
E-books and audiobooks
The Book module manages EPUB and PDF titles and audiobooks. MacX MediaTrans copies the device’s book collection to the Mac. It can convert EPUB files to PDF, TXT or HTML on export, so users can read them outside Apple Books. The user adds and syncs new books the same way as other media and can delete books singly or in groups.
Using the iPhone as a flash drive
Flash Drive mode treats free space on the iPhone or iPad as external storage. The user can store any file type by adding files or dragging them into the window. These can range from Word, Excel and PDF documents to disk images and applications. The module includes basic file tools: New Folder, rename, delete, refresh and Export to copy items back to a Mac. Files kept this way are only visible through MacX MediaTrans and do not appear in the device’s own apps.
Password encryption
MacX MediaTrans can password-protect media files saved locally on the Mac using AES-256 encryption. Photos and videos copied from the device are then unreadable on the Mac without the password. The same protection applies to transfers from iOS to the Mac.
