{"id":148122,"date":"2019-10-09T14:00:40","date_gmt":"2019-10-09T12:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sftarticles.wpenginepowered.com\/en\/?p=148122"},"modified":"2025-07-01T21:29:38","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T04:29:38","slug":"vlc-all-you-can-do-besides-play-videos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/vlc-all-you-can-do-besides-play-videos\/","title":{"rendered":"VLC: All you can do besides play videos"},"content":{"rendered":"

VLC Media Player by VideoLAN is an absolute behemoth open-source digital media and video player. It is quite comfortably able to play almost all types of codecs, file formats, and media from MP3 files to MP4 and a whole host of other video format playlists. This is the thing though, whereas it is definitely important for a media player to be able to play video file types like MKV, MOV, and AVI; VLC Media Player can actually do so much more.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why we\u2019ve decided to put together a list of the 5 best hidden features of VLC. After reading our guide not only will you know about the best VLC features, you\u2019ll also know how to use them. Let\u2019s get started:<\/p>\n

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\r\n VLC media player<\/span>\r\n download free \u25ba<\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
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5 of the best hidden VLC tricks and features<\/h2>\n

How to use VLC to convert audio and video files<\/h3>\n

VLC Player offers a very competent option for anybody who needs to convert a media file from one format to another<\/a>. If you\u2019ve VLC Player installed on your Windows PC or Mac, you won\u2019t need to purchase, download, or install any third-party software so that you can convert your media files. It doesn’t even require a special plugin. No more searching for solutions on Google, this is how to convert video.<\/p>\n

\"VLC<\/p>\n

First you need to open VLC, then click on the Media<\/strong> dropdown menu, and finally hit Convert\/Save<\/strong>. You\u2019ll then need to select the videos or audio files you want to convert using the Add<\/strong> button. Then in the Destination file <\/strong>box put the folder you want your converted files to save to and what you want the files to be called. After that you choose the VLC file type<\/a> by clicking on the spanner button and selecting from the dropdown menu. Once you\u2019ve followed the above instructions all you need to do is hit the Start <\/strong>button to begin. There are also some advanced features you can take advantage of, and you can find out all about the advanced VLC file conversion features here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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How to make VLC your default video player on Windows 10 and Mac<\/p>\r\n Read Now<\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n

How to use VLC to record video and audio<\/h3>\n

If you have a Windows 10 PC or a Mac<\/a>, you will have a native camera app and sound recorder for taking photos and videos using your webcam and recording sounds using your microphone. That\u2019s all well and good but you can do both on just one app; VLC<\/a>. Furthermore, as we\u2019ve just seen, VLC can also convert audio and video files easily meaning you can quickly and simply take your recordings and convert them into any video output or file type. These will then be good for use on all your devices from Android smartphones and tablets to Apple iPhones and iPods.<\/p>\n

\"Advanced<\/p>\n

To record audio on VLC you need to activate Advanced Controls by clicking View <\/strong>in the top menu and then selecting Advanced Controls<\/strong>. This will display new controls in the bottom-left of VLC above the play button. To start recording sound all you need to do is press the Record <\/strong>button. To stop recording and save your file, simply press the Record button again.<\/p>\n

\"Open<\/p>\n

To record video on VLC using your webcam you need to go to Media <\/strong>then Open Capture Device<\/strong>. You now need to set Capture Mode<\/strong> to Direct Show<\/strong> and you\u2019ll need to select your webcam from the options in the Video device name <\/strong>menu. If you want to record sound with your video, you\u2019ll need to select your microphone from the Audio device name <\/strong>menu.<\/p>\n

How to use VLC to record your desktop<\/h3>\n

Screenshots are an important part of the modern digital life we\u2019re all living. Yes, you guessed it VLC does screenshots too, but we\u2019ll get to that in a minute. VLC also offers the chance to record everything that is happening on your desktop rather than simply catching an instant.<\/p>\n

\"Record<\/p>\n

To record your desktop open VLC, hit Media <\/strong>in the top menu and then click Open Capture Device<\/strong>. You now need to change the Capture mode <\/strong>setting to Desktop<\/strong> and then select the framerate you want for your recording.  After that hit Convert <\/strong>so that you can select the file type your recording will save as and hit Start <\/strong>to begin. When you\u2019re done recording your desktop hit Stop <\/strong>to save it.<\/p>\n

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Transform VLC Player into a Screen Capture App<\/p>\r\n Find out how<\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n

How to screenshot on VLC<\/h3>\n

There are two ways to snap screenshots of videos using VLC. The first is to right-click <\/strong>and then select Video <\/strong>in the dropdown menu and select Take Snapshot<\/strong>. The other way to take a screenshot using VLC is to use the keyboard shortcut. On Windows or Linux press Shift + S <\/strong>and on Mac OS press CMD + ALT + S<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

How to use VLC to rip DVDs onto your PC<\/h3>\n

DVDs used to be everything. When they first replaced VHS tapes their superior quality and sleek smaller form factor made them perfect for collections. If you\u2019ve a huge DVD collection and want to save the movies and shows on your PC in case something happens to them or just because you never watch DVDs anymore, VLC can help you out.<\/p>\n

\"Rip<\/p>\n

To rip a DVD using VLC insert the disc and then go to Media <\/strong>and then hit Convert\/Save<\/strong>. Open the Disc <\/strong>tab and then choose the type of disc you\u2019re ripping, which in this case is DVD. After that, check the No disc menus <\/strong>button and choose the desired Disc device <\/strong>where you want to save your DVD. Then hit the Convert\/Save <\/strong>button and choose the file type you want to save your DVD as and then hit Start<\/strong> to begin the process.<\/p>\n

Wrapping up<\/h5>\n

So, there you have five hidden VLC features that go beyond just playing media files. Now you know how to take advantage of some of the best VLC features. If you\u2019d like to know more cool hidden VLC features, you\u2019ll be glad to know that we\u2019ve put together another guide to some of the best hidden VLC features, which you can read here<\/a>. This guide includes how to listen to internet radio and podcasts using VLC and even gets into video effects.<\/p>\n

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5 Hidden Features in VLC Player That You Need to Know<\/p>\r\n Find them out now<\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n

VLC isn’t just great because it is a free open-source piece of software. It puts a lot of very powerful tools at your fingertips. We hope you enjoy using the tools we’ve highlighted in this guide.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Check out some of the best hidden features of VLC. Learn how to record audio, video, and your desktop and may other great features too.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9073,"featured_media":177630,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","wpcf-pageviews":1},"categories":[2518,2441],"tags":[2321,1030,1081,1039,1699,1466,1080,1052],"usertag":[],"vertical":[],"content-category":[],"class_list":["post-148122","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guides","category-how-to","tag-app-subdomain-redirectionvlc-media-player","tag-entertainment","tag-mac","tag-multimedia","tag-video","tag-vlc","tag-windows","tag-windows-10"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148122","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9073"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=148122"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148122\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":325459,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148122\/revisions\/325459"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/177630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=148122"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=148122"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=148122"},{"taxonomy":"usertag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/usertag?post=148122"},{"taxonomy":"vertical","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vertical?post=148122"},{"taxonomy":"content-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content-category?post=148122"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}