Everything You Should Know about VLC Media Player

VLC Media Player, commonly known as VLC, is one of the most prevalent media players. It is not only a media player, but also integrates a variety of features and custom options. As the go-to player for geeks for more than a decade, it meets various demands related to video and music streaming, converting, playing and more. According to a recent survey, the Windows version of VLC is closing in on 50 million downloads.

It makes sense that VLC attracts so many users considering it is totally free of charge. However, many users complained that this free media player packs so many features and settings that they cannot master it completely. Moreover, the developers keep releasing new versions and updates. That makes it more difficult to learn. Therefore, we are going to share everything you should know about VLC Media Player, from features to review, from how-to to alternatives.

Part 1: Introduction of VLC

The latest version for Windows and Mac is VLC video player 3.0.6.

Basic features of PC version:

• 1. Play videos and audio files from any sources, like hard disk, DVD, websites, and more.
• 2. Completely control the playback with the playback icons and hotkeys.
• 3. Support almost all multimedia formats, such as MPEG-2, MPEG-4, H.264, MKV, WebM, WMV, MP3, etc.
• 4. Transcode videos to another format or for playing on portable devices.
• 5. Rip multimedia contents from DVDs and CDs without losing quality.
• 6. Include a wide range of custom options for you to control quality, codec, size and more.

Now, the VLC has released an app for iOS and Android respectively. You can look at 360-degree and other videos on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android.

The mobile version almost shares all basic features of PC version except DVD ripping and video converting.

Part 2: How to use VLC

The biggest downside of VLC Medi Player is the complex usage. To be honest, without a guide, beginners cannot handle it at all. This part will show you step-by-step guides.

How to play videos with VLC Media Player like a pro

We use VLC for Mac as the example.

Step 1: Download VLC media player for Mac for free from the official website. You should keep the default options when installing.

Step 2: Then open it and go to File -> Open File and load the video you want to view.

Step 3: After the play window opens, you can control the playback with the icons on the bottom.

Step 4: If you want to adjust video or audio, press the graphic equalizer icon at the bottom or click Tools -> Effects and Filters on top ribbon. Now, you can modify the parameters until you get the desired effect.

Tip: The Synchronization feature can be used to alleviate the problem of sound and video that is not in sync. Moreover, you can add new subtitle to your video.

Step 5: To switch to the full screen mode, press F11 or click View -> Fullscreen Interface. VLC media player for Windows 10 also permits you to switch to the Minimal Interface mode.

How to stream online videos with VLC

To show you the process, we use VLC Media Player and Windows 10.

Step 1: Head to Media -> Open Network Stream, copy the video address and paste it into the URL box.

Step 2: Click the Play button to start viewing the video streaming.

Step 3: Expand the downward icon next to the Play button and select Convert.

Step 4: Select a proper video format from the Profile dropdown menu and drop a location to save it by hitting the Browse button.

Step 5: Click the Start button to begin downloading the online video to your hard drive.

How to convert videos with VLC Media Player

Step 1: Navigate to Media -> Convert/Save in VLC on Windows or File -> Convert/Save in VLC on Mac.

Step 2: Press the Add button to trigger the Explorer window and add the video or videos you want to convert.

Step 3: Hit the downward icon next to the Convert/Save button and select Convert to move on.

Step 4: Next, choose your favorite format or the target device from the Profile dropdown menu, select a specific folder to save the output by clicking the Browse button.

Step 5: Once click the Start button, the videos will be transcoded based on your settings.

How to rip a DVD using VLC Media Player

If you have some home-made physical discs, VLC also could help you to convert them to digital videos.

Step 1: Go to Media -> Convert/Save in your VLC Media Player.

Step 2: Locate the Disc tab and insert the optical disc into your DVD drive.

Tip: VLC is able to rip DVDs encrypted by CSS, but it is not available to the latest encryption technologies.

Step 3: Select DVD and choose your DVD drive from the Disc device dropdown list.

Step 4: Then you can decide to rip the entire DVD or certain titles, and select the audio and subtitles. Click the Convert/Save button to open the next window.

Step 5: Next, set the format, destination and filename. Hit the Start button to initiate ripping DVDs to digital videos.

Note: It may take a while to convert a DVD to digital files.

In addition to play videos, convert multimedia content and rip homemade DVDs, VLC video player also has the capacity to capture everything on your desktop or yourself in front the Webcam, create video desktop wallpaper, and trim a video into clips. You can explore these functionalities after downloading VLC media player.

Part 3: VLC media player reviews?

What we like:

• 1. VLC media player is open source and completely free to download and use.
• 2. If you download it from the official website or reputable sources, it is absolutely safe and legal without ads, virus or malware.
• 3. It natively supports a wide range of multimedia formats, including AVI, WMV, MOV, MP3, Ogg, FLAC, etc.
• 4. With VLC, everyone can enjoy videos and audio tracks without installing any extra codecs.
• 5. There are oceans of custom options related to format, quality, and other parameters.
• 6. The built-in audio equalizer allows you to boost sound without distorting.
• 7. It is available to Windows 10/8.1/8/7, Mac OS X/11/12, iPhone XR/XS/X/8/7/6s and earlier, and Android devices.
• 8. VLC media player is lightweight and does not require much memory or processor power.

What we do not like:

• 1. VLC is designed as a video player, so you cannot manage your music library with it.
• 2. Though the play window is straightforward, functionalities related to video convert, DVD rip and online stream are hidden in the menu list.
• 3. It cannot remember your settings, such as full screen mode. Every time open VLC, you have to set it again.
• 4. VLC contains too many features and custom options, which can be confusing to non-tech savvy.

Part 4: Top 5 alternatives to VLC

It is an undoubted fact that VLC is a superb media player; however, it is sophisticated and not perfect. Here we list top 5 best alternatives to VLC video players, apart from Real Player, Windows Media Player, etc.

Top 1: AnyMP4 Blu-ray Player

Advantages::

• 1. Play any videos on computer, like local videos, Blu-ray disc, Blu-ray folder and ISO image file.
• 2. Support all video and audio formats, such as MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV, M4V, MTS, MKV, DivX, etc.
• 3. Let you enjoy HD videos up to 4K/1080p with the original quality.
• 4. Optimize video and audio quality automatically using advanced technology.
• 5. Easier to control video playback than VLC media player and other video players

Disadvantages:

• AnyMP4 Blu-ray Player is a professional media player, so you have to purchase it after the free-trial.

Top 2: KM Player

Advantages:

• 1. It supports as many video and audio formats as VLC video player.
• 2. This free media player has the capacity to read and play damaged AVI videos, locked media files and compressed audio albums.
• 3. It offers live broadcasting and other advanced features for free.
• 4. Users can get the good picture quality and playback.
• 5. The audio management feature is a convenient way to organize your music library.

Disadvantages:

• 1. It is slower than most media players, such as VLC video player, when loading HD videos.
• 2. It is not compatible with Mac OS X/11/12.
• 3. You should be careful when installation since it will download extra software.

Top 3: QuickTime

Advantages:

• 1. It is pre-installed on Mac OS 12/11/X and free of charge.
• 2. Similar to VLC, QuickTime is able to record Skype videos and everything in front your Webcam.
• 3. You can use it to record and download online videos for personal use.
• 4. It allows you to play videos stores on your hard drive or stream content via URL.
• 5. QuickTime works perfectly with HD videos.

Disadvantages:

• 1. It lacks some important features, like video converting.
• 2. Unlike VLC video player, QuickTime does not support AVI, FLV and more.
• 3. You have to install bloatware application along with QuickTime.

Top 4: Media Player Classic Home Cinema

Advantages:

• 1. The interface is intuitive and look familiar to Windows operating system users.
• 2. The lightweight installation makes it very easy on system resources.
• 3. It contains a lot of control options for advanced users to set up as their wish.
• 4. MPC not only supports various video and audio formats, but also be available to JPG, GIF, PNG and BMP.

Disadvantages:

• 1. It does not include as many features as VLC video player.
• 2. MPC is only suitable for average people but not tech savvy since it does not include amazing features.

Top 5: DivX

Advantages:

• 1. This video player supports multiple subtitles and audio tracks up to 8.
• 2. It could quickly load and play videos and audio tracks on local hard drive, SD card and more.
• 3. The alternative to VLC is able to remember your preferences.
• 4. Like VLC video player, DivX pack a video converter for transcoding videos to other formats.
• 5. It supports a large number of multimedia formats other than DivX.

Disadvantages:

• 1. The installation file is big and it uses lots of processor power.
• 2. The video converter is only free within 15 days.

Part 5: FAQs of VLC Media Player

Conclusion

Based on our sharing, you should understand what is VLC media player, what it can do and how to use it. It cannot be denied that VLC is an excellent video player packing extensive features. On the other hand, we also shared the best alternatives to VLC. We hope that our sharing is helpful to you.