How to Fix Video Codec Not Supported on Android & Windows? [2024]

Today, videos are the trendiest category of multimedia content. Playing videos (visual content) on a computer, Android, or other device is pleasant. However, it also comes with several troubleshooting problems. For example, you may face the problem "video codec not supported" error while playing a video, with error codes like 0xc00d36c4 or 0xc00d5212. 

This isn't very pleasant, especially when someone likes his video file. He may be wondering why this code problem occurs even if his video file is saved in a compatible format like MP4 or MKV. 

Are you also facing a tough time with video playback and do not know why you have trouble with the unsupported video codec format? Let's come to read the solution. 

This blog post will discuss the reasons and solutions that will work to get rid of them.

What is a Codec?

Codec is an abbreviation of coder-decoder. This name refers to a process of encrypting and decrypting data, particularly compressed data. For instance, mp4 is a well-known Android video format. 

Like this, Android versions have specific video and audio codecs. A codec is which compresses a data set, either video or audio, to store and unzip it for playback or watching. Codec is not the same as containers and file formats.  

What is a Container?

A container is also known as a file format. It is all about packing, transporting, and displaying data. On the other hand, the codec makes a ready file for these processes. The container works to synchronize the audio and video. This file part analyzes the file kind. Let's consider it this; in a file format of nextpit.mp4, MP4 is a container. 

What is Video Codec Not Supported?

We will help you consider this with an example of an interpreter who knows ten overseas languages. So, he can reply in the same language to those who speak with him in these ten languages. We can say that this person (interpreter who knows ten languages) has ten different codecs. When he learns the 11th language, he will learn the 11th codec. 

This is all about the codec. Different video formats like MP4, MPG, and AVI are written in various digital languages. The codec supports the video player to analyze the language of a particular video format. The video player requires a varied codec to run each video. 

So, when you see an error stating "can t play video video codec not supported," it means that your device's player lacks the required codec knowledge (learning) to determine the written language of the video file you are playing. Hence, downloading and installing the exact codec will empower your player to read the file and play it. 

Now let's come to the solution part to this error;

3 Best Ways to Fix Video Codec Not Supported Error

What is Video Codec Not Supported Android?

Every device supports a particular set of audio and video formats and codecs. For instance, an Android device reads the AVI file in MP4 and MKV format when updating your phone to a 10+ version. So, if you have an AVI codec video on a previous Android phone, you would not be able to play the file. 

Conversely, you can run a MOV file on QuickTime. However, after sending it on your Windows 10 computer may fail you to play it and shows a "can t play video codec not supported" error. 

This is the primary reason for facing a codec error while opening a media file on a computer, Android, or other devices. 

Way 1. How to Fix Video Codec Not Supported?

Follow these simple troubleshooting steps to fix the error of the unsupported video codec.

• Install other video codecs or packs

Suppose your computer or Android phone does not have the exact codec necessary for effective playback. In that case, you should install an additional and precise codec and then try to play the video.

Here is a simple process to install a codec in Windows Media Player as an example;

• Open the "Tools" section and click on "Option" in the player.
• Now choose the "Player tab," check the box "Download codecs automatically," and click on "Ok." 
• Transfer the video and run it. 
• You may see a pop-up window mentioning installing the codec.

In addition to installing Video Codec to solve this problem, downloading Video Codec Pack is another alternative. Here we will suggest the K-Lite Video Codec Pack. Follow these tips to install K-lite;

• Go to the K-Lite Codec Pack page, and hit "Download."
• Now open the setup wizard for K-Lite, and tap on "Next."
• After it, choose "Simple" mode to start the installation.
• Keep taping "Next" and then "Install" to finish. 

This contains nearly all media codecs and will solve codec not supported problems. In this way, your player can play the desired video format easily. 

Note: Video Codec may come with a severe virus, malware, adware, and other trojan files. If you want to avoid this, you can use a media player or a video converter like DVDFab Video Converter to resolve the audio-video codec unsupported problem. 

Way 2. Use a Third-Party Video Player

You will find numerous video players in the player category to run any video file format without downloading and installing an extra video codec. These video players have audio and video codecs and do not have any using charges by default. Here we mentioned the three best and free video players to use to resolve the unsupported video format problem;

• VLC media player: This is the easiest and most consistent media player for Windows and Android devices. It comes with all codecs without installing extra ones. You will enjoy its support for DivX and XviD compressed videos. Additionally, this tool also supports different formats, including MKV, MP4, AVI, MOV, Ogg, FLAC, TS, M2TS, Wav, and AAC.
• 5KPlayer: 5KPlayer is also a light and convenient Android media player. Similarly, VLC, MX Player supports multiple files like .avi, MPEG, mp4, WMV, DivX, Xvid, and many more. The tool includes a wide range of subtitle formats, like .txt, .sub, .srt, .idx, and others. You can use it for gesture controls.
• KMPlayer: KMPlayer is a versatile media player with numerous extra functions like fast button, video zoom and move, playlist setting, subtitle setting, and many more.

Besides these, you can also use some other alternatives, including GOM player, Potplayer, or MX Player, for this purpose. All are free to use and come with most video and audio codecs. They can easily work with different video files and are the best players to solve the audio and video codec not supported problems smoothly.

Way 3. Convert to Another Video Format

Have you tried all above discussed methods? Did a third-party media player cannot solve your codec issue or also cause some other problems, including changing playback, audio delay, and others?

Then try this last and the best method: shift the video format or codec using a compatible video converter. Yes! we are talking about the greatest video converter - DVDFab Video Converter

DVDFab Video Converter

Compatibility: Windows

Price: Free, $29.99 Monthly

This professional-level software can encode all 8K, 4K, HD videos to numerous formats, including MP4, MKV, MOV, AVI, HEVC, H.264, WebM, and many more. It comes with 1000+ video and audio codecs and is highly useful to handle all video formats. You can use it to play any video recorded by any camera.

The tool is a handpicked choice to convert video formats because of format compatibility issues. So, you can enjoy playing desired videos on your preferred devices without facing a codec problem at all.

Features 

• It will help you convert any video to any other format, which can work on all iPod, iPhone, iPad, PSP, ZUNE, NDS, Xbox 360, Apple TV, PS3, and PVP, or PDA versions.
• DVDFab video converter is excellent to configure video results settings like resolution, framerate, audio format, aspect ratio, av1 codecs, etc. 
• The program has a simple interface and numerous excellent features. 
• The Enlarger AI support will help upscale the input low-resolution video from 480p to 1080p or from 1080p to 4K without affecting real quality. 

How to Use DVDFab Video Converter Free to Convert Video to Another Format?

This video converter is efficient enough to read almost all video formats and change them to any video/audio format to playback on any device, including Windows PC or mobile devices.

• Download DVDFab Video Converter and upload the file 

Click on DVDFab 12, run it, and select the converter module from the given options. Click on the "+" icon to upload the file. You can also drag and drop the video source. The free version will let you use restricted functions.

• Select one profile and personalize the video/audio result

Tap on "Choose Other Profile" and choose the required format or device accordingly from the "Format and Device option. If you want to select higher video output, go to the "Advanced Settings." The default video editor will help you to change the video result thoroughly. Now go to the "Save to" option and hit "Folder Icon" to choose the result directory. Besides this, users can also promptly share their videos on YouTube.

• Start conversion process

Hit the "Start" button to start the free and fast conversion process. You will instantly receive your converted video to the selected profile. The program will also provide you with a descriptive progress note during the conversion process. Furthermore, you can cancel or resume the process anytime, set a time to shut down your computer automatically, leave the software, sleep, or anything else when the process is final.

Conclusion

As mentioned above, the "video codec not supported" error shows that your media player is unable to support the video codec of this file. So, you have to learn about "what does video codec not supported mean, and how does the video file run." Hopefully, this article will help a lot to resolve your concerns. However, if you need a fast and reliable solution, try DVDFab Video Converter. It is the best software that comes with numerous default video codecs. Besides this, you can convert your video to any other format to play on your desired device.