VLC update adds Chromecast and HDR support
Version 3.0 is also available across all platforms, including iOS, Android and Apple TV.
If you're any kind of media nerd you know about VLC, the software video player that can handle just about any format or codec you throw at it. It's also on a ton of platforms, like macOS, Windows, Linux and even Xbox One. Now the ubiquitous app has a brand new version that supports hardware decoding for 4K and 8K playback, more 360-degree video and 3D audio, HDR and HDR tone-mapping, streaming to Chromecast and more.
Code-named after Terry Pratchett's fictional Lord Vetinari, VLC 3.0 will offer the new features across all major platforms, including iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Apple TV and Chrome OS (along with Windows, Mac and Linux systems). Venturebeat reports that the new version fixes more than 1,500 bugs, shares the same code across platforms, and has been in the works for three years.
The release also supports 10bit video, audio passthrough for HD audio codecs and will let you browse local network and network-attached storage (NAS) drives for media. Other highlights include the ability to watch Blue-ray-sourced video with full menu functionality (though it needs to be decoded somewhere besides VLC). The full list of improvements is available on the VLC announcement page.
