Android’s competitiveness as a mobile operating system is unquestionable, having surpassed Apple’s iOS in active device numbers. However, one advantage iOS continues to wield over Android is its impressive media capabilities. With the development of services like Play Music and Play Movies, Google is certainly making up lost ground, but it still lags behind Apple. Play Music, (especially its All Access subscription service) has become quite excellent, offering a solid alternative to iTunes and Spotify, but the video situation on Android is not quite as excellent. However, that is not to say that there are not options for playing both locally stored and purchased content on your device. Here are some of the top video players available for Android.
Play Movies & TV
Google’s offering for both purchasing and viewing content has grown a lot, allowing you to purchase videos, store them in your Google account, and stream them on your various devices. However, its format support for locally stored content is not as excellent as some third-party options, making it less useful for those who obtain their content from outside the Play Store. Check out the app.
MX Player
A well-established video playing app, MX player brings an impressive range of file support and a nice interface, though it may require an additional download to play some files. It handles this wide range of file types with very little performance issues, making it an excellent choice for those who are looking to play locally-stored content.
VLC Player (Beta)
Long a favorite of video junkies on the desktop, VLC has recently released the beta of their app for Android. Being a beta, it may have some performance or stability issues that more established players like MX won’t have, but it is under active development and will certainly be improving quickly. Unfortunately, the beta is not currently available in the Play Store in some countries (including the United States), but an APK download is available from their site for those of you looking to try it out anyways.
