Live Stream Downloader

Download M3U8 HLS Streams (HTTP Live Stream) to your local disk

Live Stream Downloader - Firefox Add-on for HLS Streams

"Live Stream Downloader" is a Firefox add-on that detects M3U8 streaming formats on the active tab and offers to download these segmented streams as a single file to the user's local disk. It provides multiple features including multi-thread download, direct disk writing, retries for network failure, and a special mode for downloading large files effectively. Moreover, it supports downloading from different audio, video and media streams on the active tab. It is the ultimate tool for those wanting to store multi-segmented streams for later use or for viewing media content on an unstable network.

Add-on stats

Daily users: 13,537
132
Rating: 3.47
(57)
Version: 0.5.3 (Last updated: 2024-11-13)
Version code: 5839270
Creation date: 2020-05-11
Weekly download count: 660
Firefox on Android: No
Manifest version: 3
Permissions:
  • storage
  • contextMenus
  • webRequest
  • declarativeNetRequestWithHostAccess
  • declarativeContent
  • scripting
  • alarms
Host permissions:
  • *://*/*.flv*
  • *://*/*.avi*
  • *://*/*.wmv*
  • *://*/*.mov*
  • *://*/*.mp4*
  • *://*/*.pcm*
  • *://*/*.wav*
  • *://*/*.mp3*
  • *://*/*.aac*
  • *://*/*.ogg*
  • See more
Size: 213.03K
URLs: Website

Other platforms

Live Stream Downloader (v0.5.4)
4.27 (449) 300,000
Not available on Android
Live Stream Downloader (v0.5.4)
4.50 (26) 64,953
Want to check extension ranking and stats more quickly for other Firefox add-ons? Install Chrome-Stats extension to view Firefox-Stats data as you browse the Firefox Browser Add-ons.

Add-on summary

This extension detects M3U8 streaming formats on the active tab and offers to download these segmented streams as a single file to the user's local disk.

This extension detects all possible video qualities and uses direct disk writing to store segments. So there is no need to have a recovery plan from a possible crash. Your data is written instantly to the local file and is ready to use. It also merges all segments automatically when the file is fetched. To improve download capability, the extension also sets the referrer header of the original page.

This extension uses multiple threads to download the HLS stream to increase the downloading speed and stability. Also, it supports resuming the download process when there is a network failure (Thanks to the TDM.JS engine).

How to use it:

  1. Go to a streaming website like https://videojs.com/
  2. Wait until the toolbar color changes
  3. Click on the toolbar button once to select a quality
  4. Wait until the download is over. You can see the progress as a badge text.

Features:

  1. Download HSL Streams
  2. Detect any audio, video, or media streams on the active tab
See more

User reviews

These summaries are automatically generated weekly using AI based on recent user reviews. Firefox Browser Add-ons does not verify user reviews, so some user reviews may be inaccurate, spammy, or outdated.
Pros
  • Reliable for downloading videos in various formats including live streams and HLS
  • Works effectively where other downloaders fail
  • Fast download speeds and decent performance
  • Can extract m3u8 files necessary for downloading streams
  • Ease of use for users familiar with the technical aspects of the add-on
Cons
  • User interface is not user-friendly and appears complicated
  • Lacks clear instructions or guidance for new users
  • Does not always download audio with videos
  • Recent updates have caused bugs, such as showing a blank page
  • Limited metadata availability for downloaded videos
Most mentioned
  • Complicated user interface that is not intuitive
  • Reliable performance for downloading streams that other tools can't handle
  • Lack of customization for download options (file naming and saving location)
  • Issues with recent updates causing functionality problems
User reviews
Where all else (extensions) fails, this add-on comes through - whether of a live-stream or streaming (mu3) or regular mp4 video - without fail. Only quibble is that the interface or menu isn't as familiar as other downloading apps, and the interface could appear complicated with technical listings (video often referenced as a code of numbers and letters than understandable words). But if you can decipher (even guess) the lines, it's a reliable app to download videos even when standard downloading apps stumble and fail, especially with the streaming videos.

Add-on seems properly installed, but I can't find any button in any toolbar or any possibility to manage or use the application at all. Addon is allowed in all and private windows. Where the hell would I find the button/counter for the streams? it doesn't show either with a new profile without other extensions/add-ons, BTW.
by Mattx, 2024-12-07

I would give it five stars except for the GUI, apart from that it works well for the most part. The issue with lots of sites only using HLS is that there are very few downloaders efficient enough to get them down. I like DownloadHelper but always need a good backup, for now this is it. A little work to clean up the GUI and I'll give it five stars.
View all user reviews

Add-on safety

Risk impact

Live Stream Downloader requires some sensitive permissions that could impact your browser and data security. Exercise caution before installing.

Risk impact analysis details
  • Critical Grants access to browser tabs, which can be used to track user browsing habits and history, presenting a privacy concern.
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Risk likelihood

We don't have sufficient data to confidently determine the risk likelihood of Live Stream Downloader. Use it at your own risk.

Risk likelihood analysis details
  • High This extension has low user count. Unpopular extensions may not be stable or safe.
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  • Low **** ********* *** ***** **** **** * ****** **** ***** ********** *** **** ****** ** ** ****** *** *****
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