Microsoft has started to roll out a new Windows 11 Media Player app to Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel, which will replace the Groove Music app that’s been around since the release of Windows 10. This brand new Media Player is designed for watching videos and listening to music, and your music collection in Groove Music will automatically migrate to the new app.
“Media Player beautifully showcases your local music and video collections and compliments the new look and feel of Windows 11,” the Windows Insider team explained today. The music playback experience offers rich album art and artist imagery, and a mini player is also available.
This new Media Player will also be able to display all videos in the dedicated folder on Windows 11, but users will also be able to make the app look for additional content. “We have also optimized for accessibility, with improved keyboard shortcut and access key support for keyboard users and with other assistive technologies,” the Windows Insider team explained.
The team is aware of a couple of issues affecting this new Media Player app, including a bug preventing playback from network locations. Moreover, there are other issues causing problems when editing album metadata, sorting library content with accented characters, and UI elements not respecting your app theme preference.
This is just the beginning for this new Media Player app, and the Windows Insider team will listen to feedback to improve it over the coming weeks. If you’re worried about the legacy Windows Media Player, be aware that the app will remain available in Windows Tools.
