2. VLC Media Player

VLC is one of the most functional, compact media players available. While it’s used predominantly for its ability to play unusual formats or files that simply refuse to play in other programs, VLC offers far more than many users realize.

VLC combines a compact install with the ability to open a wide range of video formats.

VLC’s ability to play unusual formats isn’t its only useful characteristic. It’s also happy to play damaged or incomplete videos. This extends to incomplete bittorrent downloads, whose patches of missing content render them unplayable in practically every other application. VLC also automatically attempts to repair broken AVIs it encounters, hopefully rendering them playable in other media players as well.

VLC is highly functional and relatively compact, but it’s something of a disappointment when it comes to audio features. The lack of library support means that using VLC necessitates hunting through music folders to find files. Also, while it does offer playlist support, the lack of a library is so inconvenient as to ensure that VLC is used almost exclusively as a video player.

VLC’s skins mean that using the player needn’t always be a drab experience.

If you do intend to use VLC for your video playback - and I whole heartedly encourage you to - then you’ll be best served by another compact application for playing music. Enter Foobar2000...