Play your movies and enjoy a hassle-free
experience with our picks of the best players and apps for your Nexus
smartphone or tablet
Movie playback is one area where Google
hasn't really done much on Android. Its standard video player is still a
defiantly dull grey and lifeless experience. The software maker clearly much
keener on pushing its online sales and rental channels on Google Play, rather
than encouraging users to fill their mobiles with their own movie files.
That said a decent Android model - and even
older phones such as Samsung's excellent Galaxy SII - have more than enough
power to run today's HD video content. Although manufacturer politics can play
a part in unfairly restricting video playback. Some mobiles only officially
allow their users to play MP4 files, for example, as if they somehow convey
more legitimate forms of media than the other movie formats available. Plus,
when it comes to video playback, the dreaded (and often overstated) Android
fragmentation situation really is a big issue. But it's a hardware problem in
the most part. The huge variety in Android chip suppliers out there, from old
handsets with single-core ARMv6 chips up to 2012's quad-core monsters, means
that some phones won't work very well as media players no matter what app you
use.
Put simply, if your phone is still an HTC
Wildfire, none of the apps here will get HD MKV files running smoothly on your
phone.
But, if you do have something relatively
modern with a fast processor, the following media apps ought to spice up
Google's rather boring movie playback options, and at least widen your options
when it comes to video viewing.
MoboPlayer
Price: Free
Web: http://play.google.com
A comprehensive list of supported codecs
makes MoboPlayer a good choice, although being entirely software based means
you'll need something with some serious processor power to watch anything
approaching HD resolution.
Still, for getting subtitled MKVs and more
exotic movie file types running on Android models that don't officially support
them, it's a decent, simple and free choice.
VLC for Android Beta
Price: Free
Web: http://play.google.com
Desktop video player VLC is a bit of a
latecomer, with its mobile player still featuring a beta tag, limited hardware
support and a list of caveats as long as the queue outside an Apple Store once
a year. However, it’s free, plays most media types through a home network, lets
you adjust aspect ratios, and more.
It’ll be great, when it’s finished.
DicePlayer
Price: Free
Web: http://play.google.com
A serious option for the hardcore video
nerd, DicePlayer features hardware accelerated video playback along with
network streaming for easy access to your vast media collection. Results vary
according to device, but if it plays nicely with yours, you should get AVI,
MOV, MKV, FLV support and more, plus there’s a pop-out player that can sit atop
your homescreen.
VPlayer
Price: Free
Web: http://play.google.com
Hardware playback acceleration is this
one’s selling point, bringing enhanced file format support- including HD MKVs
and AVIs – plus 1080p decoding to more powerful phones. It also handles the
hard stuff, such as the inclusion of subtitle files, for watching Scandinavian
art-house thrillers.
RockPlayer
Price: Free
Web: http://play.google.com
Another option that offers the choice of
hardware or software decoding, for getting the most out of your phone’s power.
If you need a simple tool to play AVIs on an older handset, it does the job,
plus it can read stuff stored as ripped ISO images, if that’s how you store old
media
VitalPlayer
Price: free
Web: http://play.google.com
Another hardware or software based player,
this offers comprehensive codec support and even runs on older ARMv6 devices,
making it one of the most usable options for bringing wider compatibility to
ancient Androids. Plus there’s visual customization options, if you like making
fronts look wrong.
ArcMedia Pro
Price: $3.02
Web: http://play.google.com
A small, simple way to add additional codec
support and network streaming options to your Nexus, ArcMedia supports all your
usual internet file formars like AVI, MKV, MP4, FLV and more, along with
subtile abilities and playlists. There are separate versions for tablets and
ARM chipsets.
MX Player
Price: Free
Web: http://play.google.com
Claims to "play everything" on
its Google Play artwork, and with over 10,000,000 downloads, it's the most
popular option out there. MX Player's big selling point is hardware support
that's augmented by multi-core decoding, so if you're running a modern
dual-core processor, you ought to see a significant performance boost. The app
also has a Kid’s Lock plug-in, so you can leave a child in possession of your
Android tablet without having to worry about them tweeting on your behalf.
RealPlayer
Price: Free
Web: http://play.google.com
This dinosaur has seen resurgence on
Android. While it doesn’t offer much in terms of flashy features or enhanced
video codec support, it’s a well-designed media manager that supports music and
video in one app, so it’ll save you some memory space, plus it’s really easy to
use.
mVideoPlayer
Price: free
Web: http://play.google.com
This one’s for those after a fancier
interface, because it doesn’t include alternative file or codec support. What
you do get is a very customizable player, with playlists, bookmarking, poster
and info downloads for the stuff you’re watching, plus a fantastic design.
