I was looking at some of the news surrounding the new Media Player for Xbox One, and a thought occurred to me, why isn't Microsoft porting this app to Windows? If you're not already aware, the upcoming X1 Media Player is capable of playing a huge number of video formats, including .mkv, xvid and even some lesser known and uncommon protocols.
Now while it is true that one could technically do the same by downloading and installing third party solutions (e.g. VLC) on Windows, would it hurt to have a built-in application that just did it all from the onset?
From a technical standpoint it shouldn't necessarily take much to port this app over to Windows, should it? There is already some commonality between the Xbox One and Windows platforms, it's only bound to get closer.
The other neat part about the player is its support for DLNA. With the recent Miracast API updates to Windows (i.e. being able to push Miracast content to a Windows PC), this app would sit right at home, wouldn't it?
A standardized app that immediately makes DLNA and Miracast possible without the need to find and install software, tweak the PC, etc, would be a boon. And yes, I am aware that Windows Media Player can support DLNA, I've streamed stuff from my phone to it countless times. But this new Xbox Media Player would be a solid successor to WMP (way more supported video codecs), would it not?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qe28yty02SI
And now onto a broader point. Wouldn't it be nice to see some 'cross pollination' of key features and apps between Microsoft's various platforms? Imagine Xbox Media Player on Windows (...and maybe even RT/Phone)... or WP's Notification Centre on Windows... or Windows' ability to access Play To from the actual apps on Windows Phone, etc.
Now while it is true that one could technically do the same by downloading and installing third party solutions (e.g. VLC) on Windows, would it hurt to have a built-in application that just did it all from the onset?
From a technical standpoint it shouldn't necessarily take much to port this app over to Windows, should it? There is already some commonality between the Xbox One and Windows platforms, it's only bound to get closer.
The other neat part about the player is its support for DLNA. With the recent Miracast API updates to Windows (i.e. being able to push Miracast content to a Windows PC), this app would sit right at home, wouldn't it?
A standardized app that immediately makes DLNA and Miracast possible without the need to find and install software, tweak the PC, etc, would be a boon. And yes, I am aware that Windows Media Player can support DLNA, I've streamed stuff from my phone to it countless times. But this new Xbox Media Player would be a solid successor to WMP (way more supported video codecs), would it not?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qe28yty02SI
And now onto a broader point. Wouldn't it be nice to see some 'cross pollination' of key features and apps between Microsoft's various platforms? Imagine Xbox Media Player on Windows (...and maybe even RT/Phone)... or WP's Notification Centre on Windows... or Windows' ability to access Play To from the actual apps on Windows Phone, etc.
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