UM Player for Mac

July 20, 2011 in General, Mac, Reviews by Daniel

The release of the UM Player for Mac is an exciting event for those looking for an alternative to iTunes and Quicktime. Free, open source; there are very few players, including the much lauded VLC player, that can outperform UM.

Over 270 built-in Codecs means UM can handle almost any file format available.

 

Special Features:

Music: Audiophiles who pray for FLAC compatibility in iTunes, but are consistently disappointed, will be pleased to know that FLAC – amongst other lossless audio formats – is supported by UM.

 

Video: UM supports DivX, H.263, Mpeg, Real Video and WAV formats among others.

 

Interface: The UM interface is simple. If you want a flashy upgrade you can try one of the five skins available on the UM Player website or create your own with the skin creation tutorial. I found the interface controls of UM player intuitive. The “Help” section on the UM Player website, when used in conjunction with the forum, answered any lingering questions.

 

YouTube: One pleasant feature of UM is the ability to search and watch YouTube videos through the interface. Not only that, you can record or take screenshots of videos you particularly like and want to save for later.

 

DVDs: You can rip and create DVD files through the UM Player.

 

Other Features: UM Player can search for subtitles for movies, is cross platform for those who switch operating systems and is open source software. Open code means savvy users can tweak the player, and also opens doors for developer plugins in the future.

 

Cons:

There are a few bugs with the UM Player. When installing the .dmg the installer hung on the final script writing process. A force quit of the .dmg stopped the haywire installation, and the UM player worked fine. At the time of this post, there weren’t any further issues to note.

 

Verdict:

UM player is worth trying, especially if you like your media player packed to the gills with features and functionality. But watch out: you might get used to all the advanced features available.