CES 2019: VLC plans to add AirPlay support

Janko Roettgers/Variety

We concentrate a lot on hardware with our CES coverage but there’s been a lot of movement in the software space. And Apple has a way of being at the show without actually being there. This time we get an update from open-source video player VLC. Jean-Baptiste Kempf, one of the app’s lead developers, told Variety that it plans to bring AirPlay support from Android or iPhone to the Apple TV. It should be coming to the main VLC app in “about a month” for free. The video app closes in out its three billion download mark and has been celebrating the news at its booth in CES.

The other feature VLC was demoing at CES included better support for virtual reality, making it possible to watch 2D movies in a virtual theater environment within VR headsets. The developers managed to reverse-engineer most VR headsets to natively support VR video through the main VLC app without needing to add “hundreds of megabytes” of code to VLC. The demo was just based on around 1MB of additional code.

VLC adds 360-degree video support

VLC is hands down my favorite video player and this latest addition is going to score it some brownie points with those obsessed with 360-degree videos. VideoLan introduced in a technical preview the ability for the desktop app to play 360-degree videos, panoramas, and photos. It’ll work with both Windows and Mac machines and will come to the full version of VLC 3.0, which is expected to drop at the end of the month.

VLC’s creators partnered with 360-degree camera maker Giroptic to develop the system, which will also work on its mobile apps. VLC will also support virtual reality headsets such as Google’s Daydream VR, HTC Vive, and Oculus Rift. You can use your mouse and keyboard to navigate the footage and photos. Aside from that, VideoLan plans to add 360-degree audio support, including head-tracking headphones. But this will come at a later unspecified date.

Source: Engadget

VLC for Android can now play videos from local network

VLC for Android adds a rather useful feature into its app. It now lets you watch the movies and shows you store on your local network. The latest version of the app also brings a pop-up video window to let tablets owner watch while they do other things. The Android TV version merges with the mobile app and gets a new look to accompany that. And it now allows you to create video playlists and lessened the amount of permissions you have to go through for it to work with your device.

Source: Engadget

VLC adds split-screen support on iOS, among other features

VLC gets a significant update on iOS. One of the new features include split-screen support for the iPad. This means, you can watch your favorite shows or movies while doing other things on your tablet. The app also gets Touch ID support, meaning you can lock the app behind this feature and not have people looking into your video collection.

Other new features include the ability to configure gestures as well as the ability to set up your playback continuation options.

Source: Lifehacker | Download: Apple App Store (Free)