Comparison

VLC Streamer vs CyberLink PowerPlayer

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

VLC Streamer

Stream your entire movie collection from your PC to your iPhone, iPod, or iPad without conversion. Enjoy your favorite films anywhere in your house with easy setup and customizable controls.

Highlights
  • Stream movies from PC
  • No conversion needed
  • Browse local drives and network shares
  • Customizable gesture controls
  • Support for multiple resolutions
  • Live video streaming
Features
Read full description

Sit anywhere in your house and watch movies or TV shows on your iPhone, iPod or iPad. VLC Streamer streams movies from your computer to your iDevice. Winner *Best Entertainment App* Chip.de. You can watch anything from your movie collection. No need for complex conversion processes. No need to manually transfer programs to your device. “Can these guys do no wrong? Seriously, if only other app devs knew how to make apps as well as these guys, the world would be a better place. Or at least my device would be less buggy. I was just watching a Full HD copy of Avatar Extended Edition being streamed from my PC on my iPod Touch 2nd Generation and it looked and played amazingly.” - UK Reviewer “…it's as good as having the original VLC player on your iOS device…” - CallingAllGeeks.org “…Setup is a snap and literally takes 2 seconds. You can browse through all your movies from your device and click any one to start playing. It even works if you have the movies stored on a USB drive connected to the host computer.” -The Times of India “Took me seconds to setup to stream from a secondary drive in my home office. Going straight out to get a cable for my TV.” - USA Reviewer “….This sucker can stream off the pc and plays virtually anything you throw at it. Download it now!” - TaxiDriver at Blippy.com There are a huge number of movie formats, and VLC can convert most of them - but it can't convert everything. If you have any doubts, then please try the free version of this application first. • Features include • - Free helper app gets you streaming quickly and allows you to browse local drives, and Windows network shares - Stream over wifi directly from your computer - Customisable gesture controls - Support for multiple resolutions and streaming quality levels - Live streaming of video after a few seconds of processing (assumes a reasonably powered computer) • System Requirements • - VLC Streamer will not play DRM protected videos. Videos from the iTunes store do include DRM. - VLC Streamer is designed to work on your local network, and the free helper app has to run on your Mac or PC.    - Supports Windows, Vista, Windows 7 and Window 8 - Supports Mac OS 10.7 and above. • Response to feedback • -If you do have any problems streaming movies, then please just check the help instructions in the app. Feel free to drop me an email (my personal mail is in the app) if you need help. • Subscription Information • VLC Streamer is supported through an auto-renewing subscription which you can choose to purchase within the app. • The subscription is called 'VLC Streamer Annual Subscription ' • It is an annual subscription. It gets rid of the adverts and unlocks all functions, including downloading movies to your device • Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase • Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period • Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period • Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase • Terms of use are available at https://HobbyistSoftware.com/terms • Privacy policy is available at https://HobbyistSoftware.com/privacy Enjoy!

About

CyberLink PowerPlayer

Access and play your shared media from your home network or cloud storage on your iPhone or iPad. Stream movies, TV shows, photos, and music seamlessly between devices and share content with friends and family.

Highlights
  • Playback shared media via Wi-Fi
  • Playback from CyberLink Cloud
  • Seamless playback handoff
  • Upload media to cloud
  • Create sharable links
  • Password-protect shared links
Features
Read full description

PowerPlayer, the Companion App for PowerDVD Take your home entertainment experience to the next level with the companion app for PowerDVD and PowerPlayer 365. Easily and quickly access your shared media from your wireless home network or files hosted on your CyberLink Cloud and playback on your iPhone or iPad. PowerPlayer enables you to binge on your favorite TV shows, movies, photos, and music from anywhere, with seamless playback when switching from one device to another. Share the fun and share your media files with friends and family, allowing them to enjoy on-demand access to movies, shows, and other media files you share with them. Features: - Playback media shared via home Wi-Fi network - Playback media uploaded to CyberLink Cloud - Seamless playback handoff between devices - Upload media files to your CyberLink Cloud - Create sharable links for media store on the Cloud - Add passwords/restrictions to shared links **Notes** For the best experience, the PowerPlayer app requires you to have PowerDVD, or PowerPlayer 365 installed on your home computer and have activated your CyberLink Cloud account. Share with Friends & Family is only applicable to media uploaded to the Cloud. No additional software or services are required, and playback can be performed via the free PowerPlayer app or using a browser.

Screenshots

VLC Streamer4 screens
CyberLink PowerPlayer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: VLC Streamer at 4.5 against CyberLink PowerPlayer's 3.7. VLC Streamer also leads on review sentiment (46% vs 27%) and ratings volume (415 vs 29). CyberLink PowerPlayer's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 3 months). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. VLC Streamer sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. CyberLink PowerPlayer asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

VLC Streamer holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: VLC Streamer has 415 ratings behind it against 29, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 46% of VLC Streamer's written reviews are positive against 27% of CyberLink PowerPlayer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

VLC Streamer ships an update every 3 months, CyberLink PowerPlayer every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 12, 2026 and August 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
VLC Streamer versus CyberLink PowerPlayer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterVLC StreamerCyberLink PowerPlayer
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (415 ratings) — better3.7 (29 ratings)
Positive reviews45.7% of reviews — better26.7% of reviews
Number of ratings415 — better29
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationSubscriptionFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPod, Apple TV
Requires iOS15.011.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size64 MB60 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHobbyist Software LimitedCyberLink

Customer experience

VLC Streamer

All ratings415 ratings
Positive86.7%
Neutral4.1%
Negative9.2%
Written reviews376 reviews
Positive45.7%
Neutral8.8%
Negative45.5%

CyberLink PowerPlayer

All ratings29 ratings
Positive62.1%
Neutral10.3%
Negative27.6%
Written reviews30 reviews
Positive26.7%
Neutral16.7%
Negative56.7%

Bugs and requests

VLC Streamer

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Inability to detect/connect to host computer
  • Inconsistent video quality and buffering issues
  • Conversion process causing overheating on host computer

Requested features

4 requests
  • Remote access from outside home network
  • Improved codec support, especially for MKV files
  • Resume playback from last position
  • Ability to manage/delete files from mobile device

CyberLink PowerPlayer

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

4 purchases

VLC Streamer

Subscriptions4
  • VLC Streamer Monthly7 Days trial$0.991 Month
  • VLC Streamer Monthly7 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • VLC Streamer Annual7 Days trial$2.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • VLC Streamer Annual7 Days trial$5.991 Year
None

CyberLink PowerPlayer

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is VLC Streamer free?
VLC Streamer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CyberLink PowerPlayer free?
CyberLink PowerPlayer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, VLC Streamer or CyberLink PowerPlayer?
VLC Streamer is rated higher. VLC Streamer averages 4.5 out of 5 from 415 ratings, while CyberLink PowerPlayer averages 3.7 from 29 ratings.
Do VLC Streamer or CyberLink PowerPlayer have ads?
Neither VLC Streamer nor CyberLink PowerPlayer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, VLC Streamer or CyberLink PowerPlayer?
VLC Streamer ships an update every 3 months, and CyberLink PowerPlayer every 2 months. Most recently, VLC Streamer was updated on September 12, 2026 and CyberLink PowerPlayer on August 12, 2026.

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