Google Play plays host (pardon the pun) to VLC for Android Beta, the free media player that has proved its worth and popularity in playing plenty of media formats without missing a beat. This will be a free download, and casual users should find no qualms about downloading and installing it, although power users might just want to hold out a bit longer and wait for the final version.
Is VLC for Android a wee bit too late to the game? After all, there is a fair number of alternative apps out there such as BS Player, Dice, and MX Player for the Android operating system that does a commendable job. I guess if you really want to be spoilt for choice, then you will not be able to go wrong with VLC for Android. Since it is in beta, it will be rather limited in propagation, running only on smartphones which feature ARMv7 CPUs with NEON support. Guess entry-level Android phone owners are down and out on their luck this time around.
VLC for Android delivers support for embedded and separate file subtitles, although hardware acceleration is mandatory for smooth playback. Since video decoding hardware acceleration remains disabled by default, you will need to enable it manually via the preferences pane.