VLC is now available for the iPhone in addition to the iPad. The popular lightweight, play anything PC app is a welcome addition to the App store. As "i" device owners know, the media codecs supported are very limited. When I heard that VLC had been submitted and approved for the iPad, and then submitted for the iPhone I was suprised but excited. No more encoding video files. But how does VLC work on the iPhone? Read on for the full review.
When you open the app for the first time you are greeted with this screen, which tells you to connect to iTunes, go to the app tab, select VLC, and load files onto your device. It is literally as simple and straightforward as it could possibly be. Once you load a file into the VLC library it is already on your device, you don't need to do a seperate sync which is nice.
The pic on the left is what your media library looks like. It is very simple with only an about button, and an edit button that lets you delete files. I have tested a whole host of files, from MKV to mpeg, SD to HD, and VLC handled them all beautifully. There is no delay, loading or buffering.
The player looks similar to the iPod player minus the expand and shrink button. It has a volume and seek slider, with pause/play and foward/backward buttons. It plays videos in both vertical and horizontal orientation, and you tap to bring up or hide the controls.
Overall this is a great app. I would purchase it if it were a pay app, but guess what it's free. Making it a must have essential iPhone app. It is available for download now.
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