VLC media player is a free video player for iOS that allows you to play a wide range of different movie files on your device.

The design of VLC media player for iOS is in total contrast with the style of the desktop version of VLC - it's a lot more simplistic and Apple-feeling. For instance, the video selection window consists of an iBooks-style shelf with preview images of each video in your library.

The main player window in VLC media player is very similar to the native iOS video app. It has minimal controls aside from playback, skip and the progress bar. Although it's very easy to use, functionality is sacrificed, so don't expect any of the incredible playback controls and features in the desktop version of VLC Player. In fact, VLC media player for iOS doesn't even the same level of scrubbing controls as the default video player.

Multi-format support

The real benefit of using VLC media player on your Apple device is that it supports so many different video formats, meaning that you don't need to convert your movie to play it. It supports AVI, DivX, MKV, WMV and many more.

In our tests we experienced no playback problems once video was loaded onto VLC media player. That said, many users on the App Store complain that certain files won't play, or only play with sound (this seems to affect MKV more than others).

At present, VLC media player feels a bit unfinished. Functionality is very limited, transferring videos to VLC from iTunes is a clunky process that feels a bit hit and miss, and sometimes preview thumbnails don't display properly on the video shelf. Hopefully, these issues will be addressed as the VLC media player app evolves.

If you're fed up of converting videos for your iPhone or iPad all the time, VLC media player is an easy-to-use player that can handle a wide range of file types.

Update: Please note that VLC media player is no longer available from the App Store.