There is no reason to use VLC UWP on Windows 10 PCs

VideoLAN, makers of the popular VLC Media Player program for various desktop and mobile operating systems have released VLC 2.2 for UWP today.

VLC 2.2 for UWP, what is that you may ask. When Microsoft released Windows 8, VLC ran a Kickstarter campaign to fund the development of a VLC app for that operating system.

The campaign was successful, and the company released VLC for Windows 8 eventually to the public.

Back then, I asked, "Who is going to use the VLC Media Player app for Windows 8", and I'm asking the question today again.

The answer is different this time depending on the devices that you are using.

VLC UWP for Windows 10

VLC for Windows 10 is a great application, don't get me wrong. It is probably one of the best, if not the best, media player that is available on the Windows 10 Store.

You can use it to play video or audio files, and also stream media. The player uses a different layout than the desktop version as it is optimized for touch.

My answer back then was that no one but Windows RT users needed the VLC app. Any user who ran Windows 8 on a PC could use the desktop client which is more powerful in all aspects. You can modify the interface, install extensions, customize the player, modify keyboard shortcuts and other functionality, and do many things that the app does not support.

That does not make the application bad necessarily, but if you have the choice between a great product and one that is good but inferior, you will probably pick the great one all the time.

The situation was different for Windows RT devices as you could not run legacy Windows programs on the devices. The VLC app was a welcome addition on any device that desktop programs would not run on, but that was the scope of its usefulness.

With Windows 10, things have changed a bit. First, there is still no reason to run the VLC application on a Windows 10 PC. The VLC program is still more powerful and better in all regards.

But Windows 10 runs on other devices as well. It runs on Microsoft's Xbox One, and on Windows 10 Mobile. While the latter is more or less dead at this point, the Xbox One is not. Windows 10 may run on other devices as well where you may not be able to install desktop programs on.

This changes the situation significantly. As I said earlier, the VLC app is not a bad program, but it is not great when you compare it to the desktop program. If you cannot install the desktop version of VLC on your device, then the VLC app is one of the best options that you have when it comes to installing a powerful media player.

It shines when you compare it to other media players. I have to admit that I have not tried a whole lot of media player apps for Windows 10 because I only use desktop PCs and use better media players on these devices.

Now You: What's your take on this?