We thought we would — and we should — start this list with a free, open-source software for watching movies, other kinds of videos etc, on your Windows PCs that may vary in terms of system configuration. It’s not actually one basic player alternative, but much more, especially when we take into consideration its streaming features and other ways of media input. VLC Media Player supports almost every video and audio format you come across and it is offering a wide range of subtitle format support as well — if you are passionate about subtitles too.
VLC Media Player has a truly simplified User Interface that does not include any ads, spyware or anything else that intrudes into user privacy. And, once you have installed VLC, there is no burden of installing extra codec files — popular ones come with it! Also, if its basic skin is boring, you can install extra skins, by downloading them right away from official site of VLC Player & the collection is being updated every day.
Here comes KMPlayer, my personal choice when it comes to watching films! Even when other video players become dumbstruck if the output is of a non-common format, KMPlayer would be able to play that file, quite smoothly & there are impressive features too. Some of those features of KMPlayer include its support for 3D, 2K, 4K & UHD, presence of internal codec files that make playback easier than you except, provided the PC may have relatively lower configuration.
Rather than merely playing files, you have an option to set up libraries when it comes to videos and music; thus, you can get an awesome media experience. Similarly, there is an option to play DVDs well, with all the features you could expect in a typical DVD player. One of the other features that we praise KMPlayer for, is the ability to adjust the playback screen with respect to our screen, convenience of use and there’s an in-built subtitle editor too.
GOM Media Player comes from GOM Lab, and it is one of the best, free software you can have when you’d love to play almost every media file. It supports a wide range of video formats including MKV, FLV, etc along with standard media formats. Also, GOM Media Player has a number of advanced features when it comes to playback of files, such as the playback speed control, video effects, audio capture, A-B repeat screen etc. So, in short, GOM Media Player is an impressive software.
Talking of UI & Customization, GOM Media Player offers advanced-level customization that supports different skins! You can download skins from official GOM Player site and make GOM Player look like as you wish. Also, there is a codec finder that helps you find sufficient codecs online when there’s an uncommon file or if GOM Player lacks that codec. Despite all these, GOM Media Player will work fine with PC that runs Windows XP S2 or later.
MPC-HC, actually the acronym of Media Player Classic — Home Cinema, is yet another free software, when you prefer a lightweight desktop software to play different kinds of video files. With no sorts of intrusive toolbars or advertising stuff involved, MPC-HC offers a clean playback experience. It has to be noted that, regardless the lightweight nature, MPC-HC can play almost every heavy file that you will have in your Windows PC.
Additional features of Media Player Classic include key commands and lots more. While integrated codec support lets you play video files regardless how uncommon their video formats are, availability of the 64-bit version will be helpful when you need stabilized and powerful version. Talking about customization, MPC-HC can let you install toolbars and skins according to your tastes and preferences! In addition, MPC-HC has a portable version that extends its productivity to a new level. If we are to consider all these, MPC-HC is a great video player for Windows.
Potplayer is yet another free video player for your Windows PC, and it has support for devices that are running XP or later and ranges up to Windows 8.1, which is a good thing we hope. It does not matter if you’ve a set of hardware that is low enough; Potplayer will utilize the Hardware Acceleration feature to make sure that you’re able to get an best media experience from your desktop. There are more features when it comes to playback as well.
For instance, unlike the aforementioned video player software, Potplayer supports different kinds of 3D Glasses and 3D-oriented features of Potplayer are just awesome from the user’s point of view. Also, there is an option to get 3D output as per what your requirement is. In addition, Potplayer offers support for almost every codec you would need in the whole journey of movie watching and it supports different kinds of subtitle files as well. Screen snapshot feature, the ability to choose between sound cards, scene bookmarking etc are worth noting too.
When you do not want to compromise High-Quality movie-watching experience, including Ultra HD Videos and HEVC Playback, it is a good choice to go with DivX Player! DivX Player is actually meant for HQ Video playback and cross-device streaming of your media files. Don’t get confused about the name, DivX Player support popular video formats such as AVI, MKV & MP4 along with DIVX. The in-built Media Server feature in the bundle of DivX Player lets you stream media to various devices if they have DLNA support.
If we consider the case of playback, DivX Player has a lot of features such as FF/RW that helps you access chapters in each video, better organization through playlists, advanced audio playback, an in-built Recently Watched playlist for making sure that you can start from where you left off. In general, DivX Player is a great deal, indeed.
RealPlayer is a freemium video player solution that is available for Windows PC. Rather than merely letting you watch movies, there are enhanced options to share those videos through cloud. Then, you would be able to access those files from the device you want, anytime. Even though the free version offers standard features, it seems okay for us to get the premium version by spending $4.99 per month, given that you get a storage space of 365 GB. So, if you have good internet connection in all the devices, RealPlayer is worth a try.
There are additional features as well, such as the option to share your movies into big screen, such as HD TVs and you just need the app installed in your device. There is also an option to create bookmarks and keep them safe, so that you won’t miss a bit of your favorite stuff. Altogether, though a premium software, RealPlayer makes sense.
UMPlayer — short form for Universal Media Player — is a worth-checking software if you’d like to watch movies. It’s a free and open source solution, and it will remain so for ever; plus, you can trust the power of open source when you want a seamless movie-watching experience on your Windows PC. To make the stuff easier, UMPlayer has in-built codec support and that lets you play files including MP4, XVID, VOB, Matroska etc.
Plus, there are options to select media source from a wide variety of choices, including YouTube and other streaming services. When we consider all these, UMPlayer is a must-have software for the passionate movie freak in you, especially if you prefer a free media player with efficient features that make sense in the long run. And there are skins too — in case if you’d like to try new looks.
Plex is another new-generation way of watching movies from not only your desktop but a wide range of devices. It offers online space to store your favorite video files for later access. Even when Plex will act as a typical video player in your Windows PC, it has a number of awesome features hidden, which you may use according to what you want to do.
So, if you need a media player that CAN be extended to a media server, given that you are ready to pay, you may go with Plex. We think the software makes enough sense, from the user’s point of view. So, it’s a good choice, we bet and you can go with it, undoubtedly.
We come to the last member in the list of top video players for Windows — wait, it’s not a least-used one, by the way — and SMPlayer is worth the position. It is so because of the availability of features and simplicity of UI that has been kept throughout the interface. Along with standard features such as built-in codecs, SMPlayer offers a lot such as the YouTube support that lets you play videos right away from YouTube, collections of skins to choose from, integration to get the most appropriate subtitle etc.
In addition, SMPlayer uses MPlayer as the media playback engine and MPlayer is efficient enough to get the best out of your media hardware and thus to enhance the movie-watching experience. And, yes, it’s free and open source!
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