I know Windows Media Player is the default video player for Windows 10. But when you want to ask that if you can play HEVC video on Windows, you’d better disjoin these two questions to ask: "Does Windows 10 support HEVC?" and "Can I Play HEVC/H.265 with Windows Media Player?". Why? That’s because the answer is differenct.
Windows 10 gets native support for HEVC/HEVC
Microsoft has been working very hard with Windows 10, addressing user feedback as part of the Windows Insider Program and making various refinements and improvements to the operating system. Unlike Windows 8.1, Windows 10 will come with out-of-the-box support for High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) and MKV.
WMP on Windows 10 Doesn’t support HEVC/H.265
In earlier builds, such as 10074, Windows Media Player on Windows 10 will be able to play HEVC formats. Those of people on Windows 8.1 have had to rely on Media Player Classic or VLC for HEVC needs, and that is still an option on Windows 10.
However, Windows Media Player and the Film & TV (Movies & TV) app do not support HEVC playback in the build 10240. Microsoft has responded that Initially they included HEVC (H.265) software decode in Windows 10 pre-release for Windows for PC and phone. But later they made a late decision to limit HEVC support to devices that had hardware support. As HEVC is very computationally complex, this will provide a more consistent experience.
Although there are limited devices in the market today with HEVC hardware support (e.g., NVidia GTX960), this is likely to change soon.
The list of supported codecs and formats for Windows Media Player can be found here: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/316992
Although Windows 10 limited Windows Media Player to play HEVC/H.265 video, we still have other ways to help you solve it. One of the method is to install HEVC encoding codec for Windows Media Player while the another is to transcode H.265 to H.264 codec video for WMP.
Method 1: Install Media Player Codec Pack Plus to Handle HEVC with WMP
Package Overview:
Media Player Codec Pack Plus differs from the usual Media Player Codec Pack by including more encoder codec’s, including additional 64bit codecs. It supports almost every compression and file type used by modern video and audio files.
Compression types that you will be able to play include:
x265 | h.265 | HEVC | 10bit x264 | x264 | h.264 | AVCHD | AVC | DivX | XviD |
MP4 | MPEG4 | MPEG2 and many more.
File types you will be able to play include:
.bdmv | .evo | .hevc | .mkv | .avi | .flv | .webm | .mp4 | .m4v | .m4a | .ts | .ogm |
.ac3 | .dts | .alac | .flac | .ape | .aac | .ogg | .ofr | .mpc | .3gp and many more
Compatible with:
Microsoft Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Vista, XP, 2000, 2008, & 2003
Microsoft Windows Media Player 12, 11 & 10
Method 2: Convert HEVC to WMV for Windows Media Player on Windows 10
HEVC Decoder/Encoder Overview:
Pavtube Video Converter Ultimate is designed to handle the H.265 format like a boss. The great thing about this tool is that it combines encoding, decoding, and converting into one piece of software, which may save you some valuable time based on your goals (plus it has big, easy buttons for amateurs). With it you can easily transcode HEVC/H.265 video to SD WMV, HD WMV with wmv1, wmv2, wmv3, wvc1 for Windows Media Player on Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 8, Windows 7, etc. Apart from WMV video, Pavtube Video Converter Ultimate also can transcode HEVC video to H.264, DivX, XviD, H.263, etc. >> Reading HEVC Decoder Review.
Other Formats You Can Convert to WMP with Pavtube:
MKV to WMP | MP4 to WMP | AVI to WMP | FLV to WMP | VOB to WMP | TS to WMP | Blu-ray to WMP | DVD to WMP | OGG/FLAC to WMP | DJI Footage to WMP
Compatible with:
Windows XP/2003/Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8/windows 10
Steps to convert H.265/HEVC to WMV for Windows Media Player
Step 1: After you install the H.265/HEVC decoder correctly on your computer, drag you files in this program directly or with “Add Video” button. This top-notch H.265 to WMV converter pro supports drag-drop and batch conversion, so you can import and convert several H.265 files at one stroke.
Step 2: Come to the output list and choose HD Video > WMV HD(*.wmv) as the best video format for adding to Windows Meida Player. Of course, you can choose other WMP compatible formats like MPEG-2 or ASF.
Tip: Adjust the video and audio parameters, including the Bitrate of Video & Audio, Video Size, Sample Rate, Frame Rate, Audio Channels, etc., by clicking the Settings button on the main interface for getting the best quality.
Step 3: Now lightly click “Convert” to get H.265 to WMV conversion work started with a split second. You can view the conversion progress from the progress bar at the bottom of the dialog box. After conversion, you can import the output files to Windows Media Player for playing.
You can choose any one of the methods to play HEVC video with your Windows Media Player on Windows 10.
Related Articles:
- Two Ways to Watch H.265 Video on Android Phones
- How to Play H.265/HEVC on Kodi flawlessly?
- How to Transcode H.265/HEVC to Samsung Smart TV?
- Does Plex support H.265/HEVC Video?
- How to Play H.265 encoded videos on VLC Player?
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