VLC has finally released a ‘modern UI’ version of its open-source media player for the Windows 8 platform. After raising close to £50,000 ($78,136 USD) on Kickstarter, a beta version is available for anyone with a Windows-powered PC, laptop or tablet with an x86 or x64 processor.
The app will play back a range of video and audio formats including MKV, Ogg, MOV, FLAC and MPC, in addition to all of the codecs supported in the regular desktop app, including MPEG-1, H.265, WMV3 and VC-1. VLC is known for taking almost any file type in its stride and, based on the notes supplied by VLC developer Jean-Baptiste Kempf, it sounds like the new Windows 8 app will only build on that stellar reputation.
Given the app is still in beta though, there are some shortcomings. Support for Windows RT devices is still in the pipeline, subtitles support is limited and it’s slightly slower than the VLC desktop app, in particular for video decoding.
Nevertheless, the team working on VLC were keen to release the app so users could test it and provide early feedback. If you want to access and play all of your favorite media without jumping into the desktop environment, the new VLC app for Windows 8 is worth checking out – provided you can look past its early technical shortcomings. Otherwise, you’ll just have to wait for the app to shed its ‘beta’ label in the Windows Store.
Image Credit: INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP/Getty Images
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