JetVideo Basic VX

JetVideo Basic VX from COWOM America proved a capable, flexible media player, once we'd gotten past an ad-splashed intro that left us wondering if it was worth the effort. It has a sleek, stylish interface that groups lots of useful controls together but hides them until you need them, or toggles them open and closed, like the Extended Controls and Playlist. It plays a wide range of media files, including music files and CDs, as well as most video formats. Its extras include sound effects, subtitles for international users, an equalizer, variable playback speed, a timer, an alarm, a video converter, and a YouTube video downloader.

JetVideo Basic VX opened with its Information Viewer, a player-like interface displaying a minimal border and a series of ads in its main view. We searched for but did not find any means to open or add a file or folder and start playing videos on this ad tool. It wasn't until this window minimized itself to the system tray that we were able to access the program's main menu and open the player by loading a file. The main menu actually offers a lot, including Disc and File Modes, Sound and Visualization settings, DirectShow configuration, screen options, and a long submenu of Basic Controls. Opening a file uncovered a full suite of controls on the player's interface. The controls display subtle blue shading and highlighting that gives it a cool "late-night" effect; more importantly, they do useful things like toggle Always-on-Top.

JetVideo Basic VX proved as capable of playing our videos and tunes as most top-flight media players, and it has a lot going for it in terms of options. It looks good, too. But it needs a more user-friendly startup procedure, to mention one thing, and it's a little clunky in places; for example, the system tray icon isn't always accessible, even when the program is minimized to the taskbar. It's certainly a viable option to other free media players, including a few that are highly regarded for their performance but not their looks.