The latest articles on DEV Community by Minoch (@minoch). https://dev.to/minoch https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F4225021%2Fc410f6de-3d70-4db5-a45f-7408a409c4c8.png https://dev.to/minoch en Minoch Tue, 03 Nov 2026 22:01:38 +0000 https://dev.to/minoch/i-built-a-free-tiktok-downloader-that-handles-video-mp3-photo-slideshows-and-batches-2g3l https://dev.to/minoch/i-built-a-free-tiktok-downloader-that-handles-video-mp3-photo-slideshows-and-batches-2g3l <p>Most TikTok downloaders do one thing: video in, MP4 out. The ones I tried kept failing on the posts that are NOT plain videos — and on bad days they failed on those too, with a generic "invalid link" error.</p> <p>So I built Viditok (<a href="https://viditok.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://viditok.com</a>), a free web tool for saving PUBLIC TikTok posts. No account, no install. Paste a link, pick a format, download.</p> <h2> What it does </h2> <ul> <li> <strong>Video posts</strong> → MP4 in HD without the watermark, or MP3 (up to 320 kbps) if you only need the sound</li> <li> <strong>Photo slideshows</strong> → the audio as MP3 + ALL the photos in one ZIP, instead of an error (or 15 screenshots)</li> <li> <strong>Batch mode</strong> → up to 20 links at once</li> <li> <strong>6 languages</strong> → English, French, Arabic (with proper RTL), Spanish, Indonesian, Portuguese</li> </ul> <h2> Three lessons from building it </h2> <p><strong>1. A "post" is not a "video".</strong> Treating slideshows as failed videos is why most tools error out on them. Video posts and photo posts need completely different output logic: MP4+MP3 for one, MP3+ZIP for the other. Obvious in hindsight, but it changed the whole design.</p> <p><strong>2. Batch is the feature people actually write home about.</strong> Saving reference videos one by one is the pain; twenty at once is the relief. If I rebuilt it, batch would be on the home page from day one, not an afterthought.</p> <p><strong>3. Localization is not just translation.</strong> Arabic meant real RTL layout work, and Indonesian turned out to be one of the most natural audiences for a tool like this. Six locales, one codebase, a lot of respect for the details.</p> <h2> Honest limits </h2> <ul> <li>Public posts only. Private or deleted videos are off-limits, and any tool claiming otherwise is lying.</li> <li>No real 4K: TikTok doesn't serve most public videos above HD, so "4K downloaders" are upscaling.</li> <li>Viditok is independent and not affiliated with TikTok.</li> </ul> <p>It's free, and I'd love feedback from this community: what's missing? What would make it your default for this job?</p> webdev showdev sideprojects tools