VLC media player is undoubtedly the best kind of media player for Windows and Mac OS as. Experience the full benefits of comfortable, 360-degree playback environment of multiple file formats including damaged.
by Brian Fisher • Dec 08,2018 • Proven solutions
It is not possible simply to play WMV with any player. In order to play WMV files on Windows computers it normally requires the appropriate CODEC or software application such as Windows Media Player. For use on non-Windows computers, WMV files normally need to be converted to another format such as MP4 or MOV or any other Mac-compatible formats first.
Part 1. Best Solution to Help Play WMV Videos on Any Player
Since WMV cannot be played by Apple products, the easy solution would be to convert all these WMV files to MP4, MOV or M4V, which are natively supported on Mac. There are many third-party tools out there to convert media files on Mac, but i will recommend UniConverter for its ease of use and reliability. It is a full-featured media video converter, complete with editor and other handy tools. You will be able to convert to not only Apple-friendly formats but also other formats that are suitable for other devices. And it can be perfectly compatible with macOS 10.7 Lion to 10.15 Catalina.
The iSkysoft all-in-one video converting tool also allows you to convert any file format in 3 easy steps: Load files, choose output format and click the Convert button to begin transform the files to any player compatible format. Check here to get detailed guide on how to play WMV videos on Mac.
Part 2. TOP 8 WMV Player for Mac
#1. VLC Media Player
VLC supports a number of audio and video compression methods and file formats, including DVD-Video, video CD and streaming protocols. The user can stream over a computer network and transcode multimedia files. Transcoding is the process of converting a media file or object from one format to another, for example converting video formats like Beta to VHS, VHS to QuickTime, or QuickTime to MPEG, among others. It was the first player to support playback of encrypted DVDs on Linux and macOS by using the libdvdcss DVD decryption library.
Pros:
It is a cross-platform media player compatible with Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems.
It can cater for any type of multimedia files including DVD, Audio CD, VCD, among others.
It supports multiple codecs like MPEG-2, DivX, H.264, MKV, WebM, WMV, and MP3.
It is a lightweight media player that uses relatively few system resources. It uses very little memory or processor power, and the program files themselves use very little space on the hard drive. This means that VLC can be run simultaneously with other programs without worrying about the system freezing or crashing.
Cons:
It cannot play a few less common file formats.
It offers limited support, for example, for some formats, e.g. the RealMedia format.
It does not support certain versions of the Indeo Video codec.
#2. MPlayerX
MPlayerX is a free, open source, simple-to-use media player for almost any format. This is one of the most widely used WMV players for Mac users. It supports most of the MPEG/VOB, ASF/WMA/WMV, VIVO, QT/MOV/MP4, AVI, Ogg/OGM, RealMedia, Matroska, NUT, NuppelVideo among many others. A valuable adjunct is MPlayer's capacity to output audio files in wav format.
Pros:
Good online support;
Allows for decoding of almost any format of files on your computer;
Smooth playback;
Plays every video format using the best codecs;
No additional plug-ins needed to get the software up and running.
Cons:
Really only suitable for advanced users.
#3. DIVX
DivX Plus Software is a desktop media player, and a video conversion application. DivX is a brand name of products created by DivX, Inc., including the DivX Codec which became popular due to its ability to compress long video segments into small sizes while retaining relatively high visual quality.
Pros:
High-quality movies, TV shows and web video clips;
Smooth video playback experience;
Accommodates different formats, such as WMV, AVI, DIVX, MKV, MP4 among others.
Cons:
Quite complicated for novices;
It's a big program, and quite memory intensive which slows the computer down;
It takes a long time to install;
Codecs are not free.
#4. QuickTime + Flip4Mac
Flip4Mac Player is a free multi-format video player available from software developer, Telestream. No plug in is needed if you are running QuickTime Player 7 which has better supports for codecs. Even though there are newer updates, Flip4Mac player works best on QuickTime Player 7.
Best Wmv Player
Pros:
Supports a wide range of audio, video and streaming formats;
Simple user interface;
Not memory-intensive;
Platform-independent;
Can output videos to iPhone or iPod;
Can stream videos over a network;
Can play broken or incomplete downloads;
Installs as a group of components that Quicktime player uses to display Windows video.
Cons:
Does not support third-party system software modifications (the so-called mavericks);
Lacks multiple selection feature;
Escape key cannot be used to exit full-screen view;
Help documentation is minimal.
Upgrade required to export files.
#5. Wondershare Player
Wondershare Player is a user-friendly software application aimed at allowing the user to play any file in virtually all formats, such as MPEG1/2 and 4, Apple, 3GP, Windows or Flash media.
Wondershare Player allows for the addition of files as well as folders of songs and videos, that can be played in a loop, randomly, or on repeat. The application allows the user to open DVD movies, without compromising quality.
This is a very popular player because of its wide audio and video format support, user-friendly interface as well as excellent design features. In addition to WMV files, it also supports and playbacks other video formats that QuickTime does not support. Wondershare Player is bundled with other applications, but it can also be downloaded separately.
Pros:
Neat, tidy interface;
Easy to use and can play most formats in high quality;
Creative design;
Supports various audio and video file types and operating systems;
Light on memory usage.
Cons:
There are several bugs and error handling is not user-friendly;
Confidentiality/security is compromised by having to register an account and supply an email address;
Interface is not customizable;
It does not allow for playing online clips directly from a URL;
Not as feature-rich as other players;
No option to create CDs or burn audio-only discs.
Mkv Players For Mac
#6. JW Player
JW Player is yet another world’s popular open-source media player that is embeddable. It provides support for a wide range of platforms, media formats and browsers. It can play videos from everywhere such as HTMl, mobile, and Flash. It also comes with hundreds of integrated features that easy to use.
Pros:
Easy to configure;
It is customizable;
Cross-platform;
Cons:
It requires internet connection to work.
#7. Elmedia Player
This is a multifunctional media player for Mac. It plays several media formats including WMV, FLV, SWF, AVI, MOV, XAP, MP4 and more. Elmedia Player helps you play WMV files without having to convert them. You can also download movies and videos online. It features a snapshot tool and full-screen mode.
Pros:
Allow easy creation and management of Playlists;
Cons:
It will install extra components on your device;
It may be a bit heavy on CPU.
#8. Movist
Movist is a free media player that supports a number of video formats including WMV. Works well devices that use Mac operating system. It features a simple UI. The windows of playlists and control panel appear as HUD panels. The control panel allows you to adjust video saturation, brightness, and contrast, play speed, subtitles and syn. This program encodes both FFmpeg and QuickTime.
Pros:
It is simple and easy to use;
Free and fast to download;
It has great support for codecs;
Virus free hence safe to use; Cons:
It does not support Apple remote.
Part 3. TOP 5 WMV Player for Windows
#1. VLC Media Player
VideoLAN Client (commonly known as VLC) is a portable, free and open-source, cross-platform media player and streaming media server written by the VideoLAN project.
VLC includes many free decoding and encoding libraries, which means that the user does not have to find or calibrate proprietary plugins. VLC's codecs are available from the libavcodec library from the FFmpeg project, but it uses mainly its own multiplexers and demultiplexers and its own protocols. A multiplexer (or muxer) is a device that selects one of several analog or digital input signals and forwards the selected input into a single line. Multiplexers are mainly used to increase the amount of data that can be sent over a network which might have restrictions on time or bandwidth. A demultiplexer (or demuxer), on the other hand, takes a single input signal and selecting one of many method;
Cannot adjust the volume, navigate back and through within the track or create a playlist;
Very unstable software for playing video files.
As we all know that Media Window file (WMV) is a very popular file format which has been designed by Microsoft by itself. And as a matter of fact, this file format is supported by all Windows OS PC’s but not by Mac OS. Because there are lot of files which is having WMV file format, it becomes very important for the Mac users to get a good kind of WMV player for their Mac OS. There are several WMV players available for the Mac users which we are going to list below in this article.
So, get down to the list and search for the best choice for yourself:
1) VLC
VLC media player is undoubtedly the best kind of media player for Windows and Mac OS as well. There are lots of exciting and popular features available in VLC media player which are just magnificent. Apart from Windows and Mac OS, VLC media also supports Linux OS as well. Developed with the best kind of graphic user-interface, VLC media player just makes it easier for the users to watch files with WMV file format. And not only WMV, but there are also several other file formats like Mp3, Mp4, MKV, WebM, DivX, Mpeg-2 etc which are supported by VLC media player. Currently, there are more than 5 Million plus users who are using VLC media player in their PC’s. That’s why you will find VLC media topping up the list of every media player segment.
The better codec support on VLC media player is just a great feature that every Media player is not able to offer its users. VLC media player can also be used to stream live videos using the URL’s which you have with yourself. Just copy and paste the live streaming URL under the streaming option and let the VLC media handle the rest of the things for you. The customizable settings are another very sure shot feature of this Media player for all the lovely Mac OS users. Though the functioning of this Media player is a little bit annoying, the overall performance of this media player will surely deliver some satisfactory results to the users for sure. All you are required to do is just to download and install VLC media player from Google and enjoy its features for free.
2) QuickTime+Flip4Mac
For every Mac user who is looking out to get the best possible WMV player for their Mac device, Quicktime Flip4Mac will present you another very adorable choice as like VLC media player who is already present out there. The Quicktime Flip4Mac Media player is one of the quickest kinds of media player which will play the WMV file in just a few seconds. Unlike the VLC media player, which takes some time to set up the things to play the videos, Quicktime Flip4Mac software is considered very fast as compared to it. However, after the launch of the latest version of Quicktime Media player for Mac, the overall speed of playing videos has been decreased drastically. This is because developers are trying more and more experiments on this Media player to add the latest features which are provided by other media player of this same segment. So, using the older version of Quicktime Flip4Mac software on your PC will not hurt you in any case for sure.
All the other different file formats like Mp3, Mp4, MPEG-2, DivX etc. are well supported by this Media player for Mac users. When you first launch this media player on your PC, then it will ask for some permission to access the files. Just grant all the permissions after reading them carefully and enjoy the experience of watching the WMV file on Mac devices. Choosing out between VLC media player and Quicktime Flip4Mac is a tougher job for the users because they both are very great kind of Media players for Mac devices. So, pick the best media player who will support your device in the best possible manner.
3) MPlayerX
Another trendy choice among Mac users as an excellent WMV media player. MPlayerX is a different kind of media player that genuinely offers so many varieties of exciting features which are just brilliant. The best part of this media player is that it supports a variety of different file formats, which makes it a complete power-packed choice for the users. Videos will get played on this media player instantly in few seconds after you click on the icon. MPlayerX is a pro version of MPlayer who were also offering so many fantastic features to its users. Users can easily set the Playback speed and other media settings like Sound equalizer, Autoplay videos, etc. as well on this Media player.
Though MPlayerX media player won’t seem to be very attractive in the first look, after using it for some time, you will find that MPlayerX is really an excellent choice for the Mac users to play WMV files. Other file formats like MPEG, VIVO, WMA, Ogg/OGM, Matroska, NUT, etc. are also supported by MPlayerX media player. All you are required to do is just download it on your PC and install it. After installing, you will see that this Media player will automatically search out for all the files which are present on your PC.You will surely find it be the most relevant option as a Media player for your Mac device.
4) DivX
DivX is yet another very incredible choice for all the lovely Mac users to play WMV file format files in one go. The main reason behind the popularity of DivX media player is its good kind of Graphic user-interface, which is pretty much appealing for the users. Moreover, DivX player is also considered as an ideal media player for Mac to play DivX file format files. However, the installation of DivX media player for Mac will take some extra time, but once the installation gets completed, you can play all videos, and other multimedia files with different file formats hassle-free. Smooth playback video experience can be ensured easily by using DivX media player on your Mac device.
Furthermore, if you want to get some personalized watching experience on this media player, then you can access the customizable settings of this Media player for Mac device. The customizable settings will bring out some more exposure to the streaming experience on this Media player for sure. This Media player for Mac devices supports different types of file formats including AVI, DIVX, MKV, Mp4, etc. Users can check out the full list on its official website where they will also find the downloading link of this Media player for Mac. So, get this Media player installed on your Mac device today to experience some much important stuff for free.
5) Plex WMV Player
Plex is another very great Media player for Mac devices to play WMV files hassle-free in one go.Though there are still millions of users, who are connected with it and using it in their Mac devices for many years, Plex is a decent choice.
But the overall layout and graphics user-interface of this software is pretty much appealing for the users. Plex is also known as an “organizer.” The main reason behind the tag of this Media player is that Plex is developed with those features which can automatically arrange or manage the files which are present in the library files of the PC or Mac devices. Just click on the “System Files” icon present inside this software and see how much data are available which is supported by Plex WMV player. The advanced version of Plex is under development by the developers, and we hope that it will bring some more exposed and enhanced features for the users. Plex is an open-source software Media player for the users which they can download on their devices directly from the website. Installing and setting up the basic setup will not consume much time for sure. Plex is a very appropriate choice for the Mac devices if you set up the things in the best possible manner.
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Conclusion:
Wmv Players For Mac Os X
So, these are some top-rated and high-quality WMV media players for Mac devices. We really hope that these suggestions have helped you to install the best possible WMV player on your Mac device.