A writer quit streaming apps for a free video player and says the picture got better

A tech writer at Android Police says he stopped using streaming apps and now watches his own video files in VLC, a free player he has used since 2001. His verdict: the difference is night and day. The picture is sharper, the sound is richer, and there are no ads or buffering. The catch is that this only works if you already have the videos.

What changed

Writer Akshay Bhalla says his breaking point came while watching The Grand Tour on Prime. The video kept buffering, and the quality was throttled, meaning it was held back. He says the sound suffered too. Ads then interrupted key moments. Streaming on mobile data, he adds, also drains the phone battery faster.

He switched to playing files he keeps himself. Many came from DVDs he owns and ripped, which means copying them to digital files. They sit on his phone, memory cards, a portable drive and a NAS, a small storage box on a home network.

Why he says it looks better

The key is bitrate, the amount of data used for each second of video. He ripped his files at the highest bitrate possible. He says that gives more detail, better contrast on OLED screens and strong multi-channel sound. Other points he lists:

• No buffering, no ads, and the app remembers where you stopped.
• Videos play offline on flights, trains and in weak signal areas.
• Local playback uses less data and less battery.
• Subtitles, playback speed and an equalizer are built in or easy to add.

The catches

Storage is the big one. High-quality files take space, and he notes flash storage prices are rising. His cheap way to start is an old flash drive from a drawer, plugged into a phone or tablet with an OTG converter, a small adapter.

There is no recommendation engine, so finding something to watch is up to you. And shows that exist only on streaming services are hard to get as local files.

What to do

VLC also runs on PC, iPad and smart TVs, according to the writer. MX Player is the closest alternative he names. He suggests turning on hardware acceleration in VLC, which hands video work to the graphics chip for smoother playback. His advice is to try a week without streaming apps, using files you already own.