As usual any normal task you can do on a Windows computer requires a third party app or a workaround when doing it on an Android device. Assuming I could just post a direct link to mp4 files for Movie Night posts to give a download option for watching the movies offline was an incorrect assumption. The best option right now is to recommend Android browsers you can use to download the files directly and save them on your device or SD card.
Pure Browser - After quite a bit of searching and testing I have found a browser that is small and yet will download videos. This works differently than the other browsers to follow. When it first opens a page containing an mp4 video file or you click on a direct link to one, it will popup a momentary small dialogue asking if you want to download it; click on that dialogue to download the video. It will download to its default download directory, but you can choose to have that directory on internal storage or an external SD card. It also acts as a video player for downloaded videos. Pure Browser is compatible with Android 4.2 and up. You can get it from APKPure (2.6mb).
Pure Browser - After quite a bit of searching and testing I have found a browser that is small and yet will download videos. This works differently than the other browsers to follow. When it first opens a page containing an mp4 video file or you click on a direct link to one, it will popup a momentary small dialogue asking if you want to download it; click on that dialogue to download the video. It will download to its default download directory, but you can choose to have that directory on internal storage or an external SD card. It also acts as a video player for downloaded videos. Pure Browser is compatible with Android 4.2 and up. You can get it from APKPure (2.6mb).
Mercury Browser - A complete browser with its own code, not dependent on Android's built-in browser. To download mp4 files click and hold on the direct link and choose 'download'. Mercury has a preference to want to download to its own download folder. If you are a little tight on space on your internal memory, go to your application manager in settings and options for Mercury Browser and choose to Move to SD Card to have Mercury's files put on your external SD card instead, then it will save downloads to the SD card instead of internal memory. Mercury Browser is compatible with Android 3.0 and up. You can get it from APKPure (23.2mb). Mercury does seem to prefer tablets and can hang when first going to a page and trying to scroll down; if it hangs, just swipe up on the page once then swipe down.
Iron Browser - The same people who bring you the Chrome based browser for computers make it available for Android devices. Not quite the same browser as you cannot add Chrome extensions to this one as you can the desktop/laptop version. There is also no ad blocker in this. To download mp4 files, click and hold on the direct link and choose 'download page' (I don't know why they use those words). It will save downloads to your default Download folder in your internal storage unless you change it in settings. Iron Browser is compatible with Android 4.1 and up You can get it from APKPure (47mb).
Firefox Browser - Unlike Iron Browser, this is the same Firefox as you would use on a desktop/laptop. You can use the same plug-ins, add themes, pretty much the same stuff you can do with the desktop version, and with a tablet it looks just like the desktop version. This is also its downside as it is every bit as bloated on an Android device as it is on a computer, and with devices that use far less memory than a desktop it can bring your Android device to its knees. It also stays resident in memory after closing it, and can use a huge amount of memory; so if you have to use Firefox on your phone/tablet, after exiting do a forced stop in your application manager to completely shut it down. Firefox is compatible with Android 4.1 and up. You can get it from APKPure (39mb).
Iron Browser - The same people who bring you the Chrome based browser for computers make it available for Android devices. Not quite the same browser as you cannot add Chrome extensions to this one as you can the desktop/laptop version. There is also no ad blocker in this. To download mp4 files, click and hold on the direct link and choose 'download page' (I don't know why they use those words). It will save downloads to your default Download folder in your internal storage unless you change it in settings. Iron Browser is compatible with Android 4.1 and up You can get it from APKPure (47mb).
Firefox Browser - Unlike Iron Browser, this is the same Firefox as you would use on a desktop/laptop. You can use the same plug-ins, add themes, pretty much the same stuff you can do with the desktop version, and with a tablet it looks just like the desktop version. This is also its downside as it is every bit as bloated on an Android device as it is on a computer, and with devices that use far less memory than a desktop it can bring your Android device to its knees. It also stays resident in memory after closing it, and can use a huge amount of memory; so if you have to use Firefox on your phone/tablet, after exiting do a forced stop in your application manager to completely shut it down. Firefox is compatible with Android 4.1 and up. You can get it from APKPure (39mb).
As I find more download options to download the video files directly from the Movie Night posts using an Android phone or tablet I will update this page. I am also happy to share download instructions for other mobile devices like iPhone if someone wants to share; just contact me on Twitter or Facebook.
