VLC is a popular open source audio and video player for Linux, Windows, and Mac computers. There’s also a version for Android in the works, and earlier this month the developers launched a private beta. But if you didn’t get in on the beta, you can still test out an early alpha build of VLC.

The folks at VideoLan have offered instructions for compiling the app from source for a while, but one developer has been kind enough to do the heavy lifting so that you can just download and install an APK file directly on your phone or tablet. There are two different builds available (NEON and NONEON) as well as instructions for figuring out which version you want.

While VLC for Android is still clearly a work in progress, the app looks pretty good and does an excellent job with video playback. That alone isn’t all that exciting, as there are more than a dozen excellent video players available for Android. But VLC is also a music player, which means it may eventually be the only multimedia app you’ll need on your phone or tablet.

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Online video streaming service Netflix recently announced that its Android app could work with nearly every device running Google Android 2.2 or Android 2.3. Now it looks like competing online video company Hulu is stepping up its game as well.

Today Hulu released an updated Hulu Plus Android app that adds support for 8 new devices:

• HTC Incredible 2
• HTC Evo 3D
• HTC Sensation
• Motorola Droid 3
• Motorola X2
• Motorola Bionic
• LG Revolution
• LG G2X

That brings the total number of Android devices that support Hulu Plus to nearly 20 phones plus at least one tablet.

The Hulu Plus app lets US subscribers view hundreds of movies and TV shows for $7.99 per month. The company also offers a separate app for Japanese subscribers. Japan is the only country outside of the US where Hulu service is currently available.

Orb Networks have launched a new app for Android that allows you to stream internet video from Hulu, ABC, CBS, ESPN, FOX, and other TV networks to your phone or tablet without paying for a Hulu Plus subscription. Orb Live can also stream content from Netflix, but you’ll need a Netflix subscription, and if you have one of those you’re probably better off using the official Netflix app as long as you have a supported device.

The only catch is that in order for the $9.99 Orb Live app to do its thing you’ll need to download and install an app on your Windows or Mac PC. That’s because Orb uses your PC to grab the video from the internet, transcode it to a mobile-friendly format and beam it to your device.

Orb Live can also stream local photos, videos, and music from your computer to your mobile device.

The Android app works much like the Orb Live app that launched for iOS in July.

One downside to using Orb Live is that you’ll need to leave your PC running all the time if you want to be able to stream media to your phone or tablet. Another is that the Orb Live service is pretty CPU-intensive, so you’ll need a reasonably powerful computer unless you want choppy video streams.

Orb Live is available as a free download from the Android Market.

Netflix has offered an Android app for a few months, but initially only a few specific devices were supported. Over time Netflix has added support for more and more phones and tablets, and as of today Netflix now officially supports all devices running Google Android 2.2 Froyo and Android 2.3 Gingerbread.

Of course, what I mean by all devices is all devices in the US or Canada. Those are the countries where Netflix is currently available.

Netflix subscribers can use the app to stream TV shows and movies over WiFi or 3G internet connections. You can also manage your Watch Instantly or DVD queue using the mobile app.

Currently the only tablets running Google Android 3.x Honeycomb that officially support Netflix are the Lenovo IdeaPad K1, and Lenovo ThinkPad tablet. Many users have reported it also works on the Asus Eee Pad Transformer once you install the Android 3.2 software update, and while you can’t download the app from the Android Market on other devices, you may still be able to get it to run.

via GottaBeMobile

VLC is a popular media player for Windows, Mac and Linux computers. It was one of the first apps that could support virtually any video codec, which means that as long as you’re trying to watch a video without DRM, you can probably use VLC.

The developers have been working on an Android port of VLC for a while, and now it looks like we’re one step closer to a release. VLC for Android is now in beta testing, and you can sign up to request an invitation to participate in the private beta.

There’s a key difference between VLC for desktop computers and for Android though. Most Android phones and tablets have processors that support hardware acceleration for just a few video codecs. So while VLC may be able to decode videos that aren’t supported by your device’s chipset, it will have to use software to do that, and the performance will likely vary from device to device and video file to video file.

For instance, most recent Android devices have hardware support for H.264 video files, which means you can typically play 720p or even 1080p HD video in that format on some devices. But it’s much less common (although not impossible) to find a device that has hardware support for MKV or DiVX video files. VLC may let you watch movies in those formats anyway, but I wouldn’t expect HD videos to work well unless you have hardware support.

In other words, while it’s certainly pretty cool that VLC is set to become one of the first Swiss Army Knife video players that can run on Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android, I’d be surprised if it works much better than RockPlayer, MoboPlayer, or any of the other video players currently available for Android.

via reddit

Socialcam is a mobile app for iOS and Android that makes it easy to share videos with other users. But maybe it’s a little too easy… up until recently Socialcam didn’t provide a way to mark videos shot with your camera or uploaded from your mobile device as private.

Now Socialcam 2.4 is available for iPhone and it includes a new private video option. For some reason it’s all or nothing though — you can mark all of your videos are private, but you can’t select which videos you’d like to hide.

The company has also launched Socialcam 1.3 for Android, adding some features that had previously only been available in the iOS app such as the ability to share videos on Facebook, Twitter, Posterous, Tumbler or Dropbox, or to find Socialcam users by scanning your Facebook, Twitter, or phone contact lists.

Unfortunately the latest Android app does not include a private videos option.

Boxee makes media center software for PC, Mac and Linux computers and the company also offers a standalone set-top-box called the Boxee Box that lets you watch web video, listen to internet radio, or access other media on your TV without a PC. Today the company launched an official iPad app.

You can use the new iPad app as a sort of program guide for online video. You can find videos to watch, mark items to watch later, share videos with friends, or stream videos to your Apple tablet.

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Most Google Android phones and tablets can play videos in a handful of formats using the Gallery application. Common formats including 3gp, H.264, and MP4, but a few devices such as the Samsung Galaxy S can also handle DiVX videos. But what about FLV, Xvid, MKV or other formats? And what if you want advanced features such as slow-motion playback, or video bookmarks?

It turns out there are at least a dozen great apps available in the Android Market which give you more control over video playback and better support for a wide range of video formats. But that wasn’t always the case.

When the first Android phones were launched a few years ago, the Gallery app was your only choice. A year ago I couldn’t have made this list. But today there’s a glut of excellent video players for Android. Hopefully this list will help you find the ones that best suit your needs.

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