Play and navigate any Blu-ray and DVD disc, folder, or ISO file on your PC.
Not all software video players are capable of playing back Blu-ray discs with a level of flexibility and navigability good enough to replace a hardware BD player.
We can’t wait to have that perfect software video player that would allow us to enjoy our favorite movies on our PC or laptop with just the same set of controls and access to extra features that hardware players provide. Though closer than many others to that perfect replacement, I have to say that VideoSolo Blu-ray Player is not that player we all movie lovers have been dreaming about since forever. However, VideoSolo Blu-ray Player is close enough to that ideal to make it an excellent choice when it comes to software BD players.
It is one of those programs that select the main feature for you and start playing it back automatically, but while most of those make it nearly impossible to watch any of the other video streams stored in the disc (trailers, interviews, deleted scenes, etc.), this program will explore the disc and create a custom menu to help you move around it. This handy menu not only includes access to whatever other titles are present in the disc, but also to their chapters and to any subtitle and audio streams associated to them. You will find similar options in the Controls, Audio, Video, and Tools menus, with direct access to any of the titles and media streams available. In both cases, however, how efficiently you reach a specific content is all a matter of guesswork and trial and error, as the only reference that the program offers about the video streams on the BD is their total duration. Some navigability is, however, much better and much more desirable than no navigability at all, as many other video players tend to provide.
When it comes to DVDs things are much more in line with what their hardware siblings are capable of doing. Be it a DVD disc, a VIDEO_TS folder, or an ISO file, DVDs are played back in full and from the start, stopping at the disc’s menu to let you select what to watch and how you want to watch it. Video files in the most common formats play just fine, including the most popular SD, HD, and 4K UHD codecs. As for audio, all the most widely used lossless and lossy codecs are supported, as well as all the newest industry standards used for movie audio streams.
VideoSolo Blu-ray Player is still an excellent choice to watch and enjoy movies and other video content without being tied up to our TV set. It includes all the essential options you need to watch the video content you want, in the language and with the subtitles that you want, and wherever you want. As a nice extra, you can also take screenshots of your favorite frames, and even customize the hue, brightness, contrast, saturation, and gamma levels of the image so that it fits your preferences.
Pros
- Removes all disc protections and playback restrictions
- Offers alternative menu options to navigate the disc
- Plays back all contents of a DVD disc or folder
- Support for taking screenshots
- Includes customizable image settings
Cons
- Won't let you navigate a BD using its native menu