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I have been using Windows Media Player in my Windows 7 and I found that it can't play some type of video formats like MKV. So I am searching for a new player which:

  • supports any type of video files
  • supports any type of audio files
  • should be under 30 MB in size
  • should provide volume above 100 (because Windows Media Player is not so good in case of volume)
  • should be easy to use
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  • "any type"? I feel you have not much idea about how many video and audio formats exists - hundreds each. Not sure you need all. Computer archaeologists do.
    – Volker Siegel
    Apr 24, 2018 at 19:12

4 Answers 4

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I would recommend VLC

  • it will play just about any video/audio you throw at it (except rmvb)
  • it is not under 30mb in size, it's around 100mb (after installation), but this is due to
    it containing all the codecs it needs instead of relying on the
    system codecs - I don't think you will find much improvement here if you count the size that other players would need for codecs while still being able to play everything
  • it can provide volume above 100 (up to 200% via scrolling, up to 400% via keys)
  • it is pretty darn easy to use, and there is a lot of support for the more advanced features.

other positives:

  • it's free and open source
  • it supports streaming and viewing streams (webcams/etc.)
  • it has great subtitle support
  • it is highly customizable - you can add/remove buttons to the menu/toolbar based on your needs, set the buffering for network files, etc.
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  • How is VLC not under 30 MB ? When I checked to download it, it is just 23.6 MB.
    – Tomin Jacob
    Aug 27, 2014 at 4:18
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    @ManuJacob: After extracting it, it’s around 100 MB. (Your question didn’t make clear if you are concerned about download size, or size after extracting/installing.)
    – unor
    Aug 27, 2014 at 12:58
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I would recommend Media Player Classic - Home Cinema. It has the same interface as the old media player in WinXP but plays most video and audio files.

I find MPC-HC is easier to turn subtitles on and off compared to VLC.
It is about 36mb and is open source.

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    I found on my old netbook that MPC-HC was less resource intensive then VLC. Where VLC would occasionally stutter when playing back HQ video MPC-HC played it back smoothly.
    – AeroX
    Aug 27, 2014 at 14:46
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    also it has a big advantage over VLC: it supports hardware accelerated video decoding
    – Nazar554
    Aug 27, 2014 at 15:08
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    And it installs codecs on the system for WMP as well, so in case you later wanna play things with WMP, you can.
    – user3459110
    Aug 27, 2014 at 16:14
  • @DJDavid98 - MPC has the feature of frame stepping. In options and under keys there is an option called Frame step. we can assign a shortcut.
    – Ĭsααc tիε βöss
    Aug 27, 2014 at 18:42
  • I use this with Combined Community Codec Pack
    – ran8
    Jul 30, 2017 at 8:26
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My (current) favorite is GOM Player

Pros

  • good built-in codecs
  • detects missing codecs and suggests download (rarely needed with its built in support)
  • good automatic playlist generator
  • equalizer, 100%+ sound volume etc...
  • weird settings are hidden
  • most common settings can be found in context menu
  • free to use

Cons

  • weak non-dvd format subtitle support (but they are working on it, ASS got added in last update)
  • some controls are different from most of players, eg. double click is play/pause instead of fullscreen on/off. Might be confusing to use for first 10 minutes.
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    double click is play/pause instead of fullscreen You can change that under Options > Mouse.
    – MrLore
    Aug 28, 2014 at 14:39
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As @user2813274 stated, VLC is a good program when it comes to 'play anything'. But as he mentioned, VLC is able to do so thanks to its built-in codecs. Thats not bad, but it's possible to download those codecs separately and use whatever mediaplayer you want

I prefer K-Lite Code Pack, but I'm sure there are more of them to be found on the internet.

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