Products · Product
VLC
Raised as a usability problem by 161 people on Hacker News over 18 years (2009–2026), in 99 threads.
No issue was raised by at least 3 people in 3 threads this year.
No issue was raised by at least 3 people in 3 threads in the last 5 years.
- 1Can't figure out how to enable subtitlesUnreviewed
- 2
- 3
- 4Video playback stutters and looks choppyUnreviewed
- 5
- 6
- 7
Every issue, all time, most people first
Can't figure out how to enable subtitlesUnreviewed
20092026- Couldn't fix subtitles with delay adjustment; speed/framerate mismatch not handled2026-07-30
- Cannot take screenshots without subtitles when subtitles are on2024-04-20
- Simple things like switching subtitles or audio tracks are hard to find2020-02-18
Can't see the playlist and video at the same timeUnreviewed
20092026- Cluttered, confusing interface with playlists and media library front and center when user just wants to play a file2024-08-20
- Playlist option is hard to find and oddly implemented; next video doesn't auto-play2021-01-15
- Playlist forces itself into view and can't be turned off, appearing even when disabled2013-09-26
Playback controls are hard to reach; common actions need many pressesUnreviewed
20092026- Playback controls are granular and hard to reach; common actions need many presses or hidden menus2025-11-08
- Wants player controls to stay visible in fullscreen and a less cluttered settings menu2024-08-17
- Player window is cluttered, sync keybindings are hard to remember, open dialog and preferences are overly complex2017-01-07
Video playback stutters and looks choppyUnreviewed
20092026- Slow or completely broken seeking in video playback on macOS2022-07-18
- Video playback so slow on Raspberry Pi it is unusable2018-02-09
- Plays 4K video with high CPU use, stutters and fans spin up on Mac2017-05-24
Accidental key presses change settings that are hard to restoreUnreviewed
20092026- Accidental key presses change settings that are hard to restore without restarting2026-01-03
- Accidental key presses change settings that are hard to recover from2025-09-16
- Typing accidentally triggers hotkeys, mirroring video or desyncing audio, with no easy way to revert2018-10-17
Unreviewed issues were grouped by machine: Claude Haiku labelled each comment as a usability complaint, named what it's about and summed up the problem in a line, and a small model grouped similar problems. Nobody has checked them by hand. Expect mistakes.
The newest 50 complaints
- Playing local music on a Samsung phone is clunky, with no proper music app2026-10-16
- Couldn't fix subtitles with delay adjustment; speed/framerate mismatch not handled2026-07-30
- Skipping around in a video tears the picture and then lags badly2026-06-28
- Couldn't figure out how to use the app because controls were vague icons without text2026-06-11
- Interface is atrocious and hard to use, though it works well2026-06-11
- Interface is considered atrocious and hard to use2026-06-11
- Basic UI functions are unstable, with persistent bugs left unfixed2026-06-08
- Configuring VLC requires navigating hundreds of interdependent settings, and workarounds for bugs keep changing2026-06-08
- Search and settings in these apps are hard to use and poorly designed2026-01-04
- Accidental key presses change settings that are hard to restore without restarting2026-01-03
- Constantly tweaking advanced audio settings per movie is too many clicks2026-01-02
- Slow, buggy seeking and bloated, clumsy menus and UI2026-01-02
- Clicking the video does nothing, unlike other apps where it toggles play/pause2025-11-12
- Feels dated and cluttered, like wrestling with 1998-era software2025-11-08
- Playback controls are granular and hard to reach; common actions need many presses or hidden menus2025-11-08
- Mouse click doesn't pause video, only the space key does, which is awkward with a mouse2025-11-08
- Interface is awkward, making it harder to use than alternatives2025-11-07
- Accidental key presses change settings that are hard to recover from2025-09-16
- Endless advanced options make it confusing, leading the user to misconfigure and break it2025-06-17
- VLC recreates its window on video switch and escapes the tiling layout, returning to its original size and position2025-05-21
- Shuffling 5000+ songs from SD card crashes the app, forcing a playlist build2025-02-16
- Commenter finds VLC's UI unfriendly, though they are used to it2025-02-16
- VLC's AirPlay casting experience feels clunky to use2025-01-30
- Subtitles that paraphrase dialogue don't match what is said, making viewing a terrible experience2025-01-09
- Audio sync setting is hidden in the Android app with no clear reason2024-11-07
- VLC is complex to get streaming set up, with documentation weighted toward deprecated versions2024-11-06
- Can't figure out how to exit the ASCII mode fallback2024-09-11
- Cluttered, confusing interface with playlists and media library front and center when user just wants to play a file2024-08-20
- 4K HDR content looks washed out on a 4K SDR display2024-08-18
- Common settings and useful features are buried; mouse gestures must be enabled manually and can't be remapped2024-08-18
- Zoom controls behave badly and interact poorly with rotation, and bug reports about them get brushed off2024-08-18
- Gets lost navigating the settings page2024-08-18
- Zoom control's picture-in-picture drags the whole window and its label is pixelated and hard to read2024-08-18
- Zoom breaks badly when video is rotated or flipped, and developers dismiss reports of it2024-08-18
- Wants player controls to stay visible in fullscreen and a less cluttered settings menu2024-08-17
- UI described as janky and clunky to use2024-07-31
- Confusing permission screens; user must navigate a 'Permission not granted' screen to open files2024-07-19
- Cannot take screenshots without subtitles when subtitles are on2024-04-20
- Layout differs from Windows VLC, so users must hunt for familiar features and cannot import settings2024-03-27
- PC options settings are indescribably obscure and complicated, with no help section2024-03-13
- Full-screen video opens on the wrong monitor, invisible, needing a workaround every time2024-03-12
- Cannot open a folder to see and pick its subfolders; Open File only loads the first album2024-01-12
- SoundFont setting is hidden unless advanced configuration mode is enabled2023-12-21
- HDR movies play so dark they're unwatchable on SDR screens2023-10-06
- Player freezes with loop enabled on empty files and cannot be closed2022-10-05
- Remote control protocols are undocumented and scattered across poorly organized wiki pages2022-07-18
- Slow or completely broken seeking in video playback on macOS2022-07-18
- Entering an extra zero in delay freezes VLC, and the catch-up cannot be aborted2022-05-02
- Playback history exists but doesn't show timestamps in the UI2022-02-06
- The interface is clunky compared to other media players2022-02-03