VideoLAN has just released VLC for Android 2.0 and it's full of new features and improved functionality.
VLC has become one of the most widely-used video players available due to its ability to play a variety of video codecs and its impressive list of features.
And now that list has got even bigger, we thought we'd run through exactly what's new in the latest version.
Here's the break down:
More features, less permissions
The developers have managed to actually reduce the amount of permissions VLC for Android needs in order to work. There's also support for Android N runtime permissions and so-called 'dangerous permissions' have been reduced to one: access to media files.
Plus, VLC for Android 2.0 still supports Android 2.2, just in case you're still running an ancient version of Google's OS.
Play videos from your local network
Perhaps the biggest new feature is the expanded network playback capabilities. VLC for Android 2.0 supports DLNA/UPnP, Windows Shares, FTP(S), SFTP, and NFS protocols, which basically means you'll be able to use the network streaming capabilities with a much wider range of network types.
Subtitles
Not only will VLC for Android 2.0 detect subtitles over your network, it can also download subtitles directly from OpenSubtitles without having to visit the website. Pretty neat!
The devs have also improved support for Right-To-Left and complex text layout subtitles.
Video playlists and Picture-in-Picture
Now you can make video playlists in the same way you could audio playlists in previous versions. On top of that, there's a new picture-in-picture mode that will open the video in a pop-up window – ideal for those who want to multitask. It's mostly for tablet users, as phone screens will likely be too small to take advantage of the new feature, but it's a nice addition either way.
Playback History
Wanna keep a log of what you've watched? Us neither, but there's now a history option for those that do.
Improved Android TV interface
VLC's various interfaces have been integrated into one package, so if you prefer the Android TV look to the standard mobile one you can now switch between them in the preferences. Likewise, if you're using the TV version of the app, you can now switch to any of the other views.
And that's it! The new version of VLC for Android is available to download now from here.
