ok, i've been using handbrake for quite awhile now (since the first release of the ipod video) and i love it. yes, sometimes you will get a protected dvd which handbrake won't be able to convert. you'll just have to try a different program. the main updates on this version is the preset for iphone which is quite nice. what i also notice is that there are chapters in the movies in this update...very nice, not sure if it was in the version before this. the quality is awsome, the best there is on any iphone conversion, the problem is that each dvd movie is about 1 gigabyte once converted if you choose the iphone preset and takes a damn long time (try 5 hours+) but worth it if it's your favorite movie...like Final Fantasy IIV - Advent Children. you can alway choose the classic preset where the size deduced to about 600mb and half the time, depending on length of the movie or just input what your target size in the video tab. handebrake is used to convert dvds to .mp4 format which can be viewed in your ipod or iphone. to convert all other files such as .avi, .mpeg, .wmv, .vob, etc. to .mp4, i use visual hub. you can get visual hub here (this is the full version).
http://rapidshare.com/files/58349075/VisualHub_1.26.zip
hope this helps