Nowadays videos are part of our daily tasks , whether it’s work, study or just fun. That is why choosing a good video player is an important decision as it will be our daily tool with which we can obtain better results.
A good video player is not only the one with the most downloads from an application store , but also the one that best suits our needs and also has features that can accommodate the demands of the different audiovisual contents with which we interact.
If you want to know which are the best video players that we have selected, according to our analysis for both computers and mobile devices, do not miss this article. In addition, we will show you what features a good player has to have.
Index:
What features should the ideal HD video player have?
As we told you before, a good video player is not only the one that you download the most, but the one that best suits our needs.
That is why we have to know what are the most outstanding features that a tool of these has to have in order for us to consider it an ideal HD player.
Next we detail each one of them:
Multiple formats
When we refer to format, we are talking about the technical characteristics that a content has to have so that it can, according to the codes with which it is developed, influence the quality that the image has to have.
There are different formats for digital videos, the most popular is the “MPEG” set that includes the famous MP4 . This type of format emerged, through the International Telecommunications Union, which set the standards for compression and coding of images.
There are also MOV and AVI formats , which are not as popular as the first one but we can also find content of this type, it will depend on where we get the content we need to see.
That is why, since there is a range of formats, a good video player is one that supports or can read the codes of the different formats avoiding wasting our time. In this way it also gives us the possibility to access all the contents that exist regardless of their development code.
Audio and video codecs
Another very necessary feature to consider an ideal HD video player is that it has a good codec. This tool is a hardware that by means of a software is dedicated to the coding and its subsequent decoding of the transmission of data packets through stream.
It is necessary to have a good codec, since it loses information when you have to send a file as small as possible to your receiver.
While it is true that there are «lossless» codecs that do not lose signal, these are more used for professional issues where you need to transmit audiovisual content many times, so if it is used a standard codec could lose a lot of image quality when the transmission process is performed.
Content organization
This feature refers to the way in which the video player organizes and disposes of the transmission of data or stream packets, having a positive influence on the reception of that data.
In other words, in addition to the codec that encodes and decodes the content, according to its format, it is also necessary to send it in an orderly way so that we can improve the image quality What we want to see.
Resolution
The resolution is measured again by the pixel multiplication factor which is its horizontal width by its vertical length. There are different standard resolutions for videos that can be 720p, 1080p or 4k .
In this way it is important when choosing a high quality player that can support this type of image resolutions since we would avoid losing quality in our experience if it could not reproduce in a high resolution.
Update
Another point to keep in mind is how constant is the update of our video player software . This is important because thanks to this we can obtain greater benefits through new functions, filtering or any other kind of tool.
Function configuration
It won’t help to have a glass player that can encode well, have a good resolution, accept an important variety of formats and we can’t use it well since the degree of customization is low.
It is for all this that the technical characteristics are as important as the operational management issues thereof.
RAM memory
A key factor to consider when choosing a good player is that it occupies the least amount of RAM through the buffer, since it is necessary for the latter to load as quickly possible so that our user experience is really good.
Bit flow
This is a point related to the previous one, since this flow is the amount of information that is transmitted to the video , it is therefore necessary that there is a good flow to have a good quality. Therefore, a good video player will be the one that can send and decode a good bit stream to store as quickly as possible in the buffer.
List of the 10 best HD video players for the Windows computer and Mac
Next, we detail the list of the best players for a computer with Windows or MacOS operating system:
VLC Media Player
One of the best players currently on Windows is free and can play all kinds of formats. It is definitely an all-in-one player. Among its functions we can play video in 360 degrees and 8 k, online content and have multiple extensions to improve its operation.
Download VLC Media Player Windows
Download VLC Media Player macOS
KMPlayer
It is a multiplatform player, we can use it in MacOS and in Windows, it is also available in Android. It stands out mainly because it has a 32-bit and 64-bit version for Windows, it can play 8k, 4k video and 3D videos. Recognize multiple current video formats.
We can also download it for our Android mobile.
GOM Media Player
This is one of the best free video players for Windows. It is compatible with any type of audio and video format. In case we have a file that does not recognize we will be able to use the codec search engine that is integrated to get out of the problem.
The functions allow us, among other things, speed control, screenshot, it is customizable compatible with some computers that have Windows XP.
Download GOM Media Player Windows
PotPlayer
It is one of the players that can still support Windows XP, but this does not mean that it cannot in Windows 7, 8 or 10. It is ideal for people who do not want to consume many resources.
It has a hardware acceleration, which improves the experience with multiple 3D options. It is customizable and has a minimalist design.
Download PotPlayer Windows
ACG Player
This video player is available in the Windows store, although it has a bit of ads, the main features it offers is that it can support a large number of formats.
It allows us to play videos in 360 degrees, streaming online with video effects and multimedia sound.
Download ACG Player Windows
Media Player Classic
It is a very prominent player in terms of audio, it is available for Windows. It has an interface that very simple, in addition to offering an extremely acceptable experience , is one of the best kitty players that we can find in Windows.
It is 100% free and free of ads, it has a toolbar with which we can configure as we need.
Download Media Player Classic Windows
5K Player
It is a very simple player that allows you to see different files, such as streaming video and also offers us a tool to listen to the radio.
It’s completely free, but you have a few commercials. With this app we will be able to download videos from YouTube and also play videos in 4k. Available for Windows and MacOS.
Download 5K Player Windows
Download 5K Player macOS
UM Player
It’s a very simple player, which is perfect for old computers that don’t have many resources. It is mainly based on the fact that it supports a large number of formats and codecs, also allows you to play YouTube videos among other platforms.
We can download this application for our Windows computers.
Download UM Player Windows
Elmedia Player
We can find this player in the App Store, in addition to being totally free you can play any type of video format. It allows us to create different playlists, put subtitles on videos, stream content from other Apple products. All in a very easy and intuitive way.