VLC for iOS - 'Files' and 'Camera Roll' support

[atomoid]

I've been using VLC for years on my Win PC and absolutely love it so use it almost exclusively for playing my local files.

I had hoped to do the same and replace iOS's lackluster video player with the great features in VLC, but its a non-starter since it simply cant read my local files, neither from the 'Camera Roll' nor the 'Files' locations. The same sort of issue makes my phone's multi-gigabyte music library inaccessible as well, so my VLC media library remains empty, as it seems pointless to duplicate everything just to be able to access it from VLC.

As a result, I've had VLC app on my phone for years hoping i'd eventually take the time to figure out just what it was that i was doing wrong, but since I don't really use my phone for network media anyway asa PC is so much better for that anyways, its not much use to me as it currently is. However if VLC could read my phone's local files I would use it just about every day since camera content originates on my phone in the first place and doesn't yet exist anywhere else, especially if i'm offline.

It seems odd this ability doesn't mirror the PC version, as there are loads of other apps using iOS's UIImagePickerController class, but perhaps there is just not any demand out there for this workflow? So here's to hoping others are interested in such usage as well. I registered just to make a post here in hopes of giving a :bump: to this

[NorAMarshal]

Blimey, I’m in exactly the same situation. Used VLC for years on desktop, wanted to do better than the ios native piece of cr@p, but cant view anything in the camera roll. I’ve soent a couple of hours searching for a solution, but the best I’ve found is this post! Looks like we’re outta luck Glad I’m not alone, or just too old to figure out how it’s supposed to work.

[whatta]

Sorry, I don’t get it. I can play files from files app (VLC folder) and we can copy files from camera roll to files app.

[atomoid]

i think the point is, why do they have to be copied over to the files app in the first place? since so many other apps successfully implement Apple's UIImagePickerController class, VLC should support it too.

I know its petty to complain about what is free software after all, but i think its helpful to make suggestions nonetheless. The way its implemented currently needlessly prevents the same workflow thats normal on a desktop, or even in most other video player apps on iPhone. It doesn't make any sense to have to go into the photos app, select all the files you want to play, then duplicate them over to the Files app, storage space is always at a premium, so using this app the way it is designed to be used on the PC is a non-starter.