VLC media player is not just an application to watch video. It’s a versatile program that you can use to do a lot of other things instead of just watching video.

Normally, people install this app with an aim to enjoy multimedia files, whether videos or audios. However, if you have explored deeper at its features, there are some menus that can raise a big question, what is this menu for?

So, we are here now. Let’s talk about some hidden features of VLC that everyone may didn’t know.

1. Download a movie subtitle

When you are watching a foreign movie that you don’t know its language, the only thing you can do to fully enjoy the movie is downloading a matching subtitle. Normally, people will open web browser to start exploring the net for a subtitle as there are dozens of resources they can rely on. But, hey. It can waste your times.

There is a simpler way that you can do to download a matching movie subtitle with VLC. We’ve covered this in our precious post. Go for it for the how to.

2. Watch video from YouTube

If have some favorite video channels on YouTube and often spending your spare times watching them, there is a good and fun way of how to watch those videos without any distraction from ads and annoying related videos. How?. You can do this with VLC.

• Copy the full URL of the video you want to watch. It should look like “https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxxxxxxxxxx”
• Click Media menu and choose Open Network Stream (or simply press the CTRL+). Paste the YouTube URL and click the Play button.

3. Convert multimedia files

You don’t need to install any additional application on your desktop to convert multimedia files once you have VLC installed on your desktop. VLC has the capability to cover this. You can convert the multimedia format to another one such as MP3, MP4, Webm, OGG. Here’s how.

• Click Media and select Convert/Save. Or you can simply press CTRL+R.
• Add your file and click the Convert/Save button.
• Choose your desired multimedia format and press the Start button.

4. Stream media over the internet

Want to enjoy multimedia files from other resource on internet? You can also do this with the stream feature of VLC. You can also enjoy the multimedia files from other PCs within your local network.

• Click Media and select Open Network Stream (or simply press the CTRL+).
• Paste the full URL of a multimedia file you want to enjoy. Click the Stream button.

5. Record desktop

Another good thing of VLC is its capability to capture your desktop and save it to a file. So, if you need to record your desktop (for a tutorial, for instance) it’s not require to install additional app like Camtasia anymore. VLC has a built-in feature to accomplish this.

• Click the Media menu and select Convert/Save. Or simply press the CTRL+R.
• Choose the Capture Device tab and click the Convert/Save button.
• Name your file and press the Start button.

6. Control playback remotely from web browser

If you have several PCs in your local network, you don’t need to install VLC in every machine. You can use a PC which has VLC installed as the media center. Then you can use your web browser to access the VLC. But you need some advanced steps to do this. To activate the VLC’s web interface, click the Tools menu and follow these steps.

• From the Tools menu choose Preferences. Or simply press CTRL+P.
• Choose All at the Show settings section (bottom most).
• Search for “Main Interfaces” and check the Web option. Click Save

7. Subscribe to a podcast

VLC is not just about video. You can also use this app for listening to your favorite musics. If you have some favorite podcasts, you can also trust VLC to listen them so you don’t have to install any additional software.

• Click the View menu and select Playlist. Or simply press the CTRL+P.
• Jump to Podcasts on the Internet section and click the “+” button next to it. Enter your URL and click OK.

8. Apply video effects

While watching a video you may want to add some effects like slowing it down, brighten the video or other effects. You can do it too in VLC. Just load your video and go to the Tools menu and select Effects and Filters. Or simply press the CTRL+E button. Select the Video Effects tab and you will have some effect options that you can apply to your video.

9. Listen to the radio

VLC is also a great tool for listening the radio via internet. More interestingly, it has a list of radio stations that you can listen with a single click.

• Click the View menu and select Playlist. Or you can simply press the CTRL+L button.
• Select the Icecast Radio Directory option on the Internet section.
• Wait for a moment until the radio list is fully loaded. Double click on each list to start listening.