A first look at Windows Media Player 12

The long-awaited Windows 7 was released last week and one of its strongest selling points is undoubtedly the inclusion of Windows Media Player 12. The Windows player has received a lot of criticism in the past, but version 12 is a breath of fresh air that's sure to please fans and surprise users who've drifted away over recent years.

Although WMP 12's appearance isn't remarkably different to version 11, there is a clear distinction between the now playing and library modes. You can access now playing by clicking the icon in the lower right-hand comer of the interface. Depending on the type of media, this will either create a distraction-free viewing window, or a minimized listening window, with basic controls. In audio mode, this window will show up if you hover over the WMP icon in the new Windows 7 taskbar. From here you'll be able to see what's playing and perform basic commands, like pausing the track. Clicking on the icon again will retrieve the library window, from where you can manage and organize your media.

The WMP 12 interface is crisp, clean and easy to use. Of course, to get this minimalist look, some of the options aren't immediately visible, so you'll have to hit alt to display some of the basic commands. All of your media can be dragged and dropped for easy management, or just right-click to display the most common commands. WMP's default view uses the left pane for browsing your media library (music, video, pictures and playlists) and the center area for displaying whatever item is currently selected or playing. On the right, three tabs in the upper area (Play, Burn and Sync) enable you to create lists for playing, burning and syncing with a minimum of fuss.

The media guide is where you'll find the radio options offered by WMP 12. There's a huge variety of stations available and listening to the radio couldn't be easier - just highlight and double click, as you would with any other media source. Bear in mind that some of the options available in media guide will depend on your geographical location. Unfortunately, this is also where we can see one of WMP 12's few weaknesses – the lack of podcast support - something that's going to be a major disappointment for some.

Two of WMP's interesting, but less obvious, features are the completely customizable interface, which can be modified from the organize menu, and the auto-playlist function, perfect for when you're finding it difficult to make a decision. You go to create auto-playlist and click away to exclude and include what ever you want.

All in all, WMP12 is a pleasure to use. It's intuitive, easy on the eye and very efficient and is definitely one of Windows 7's star performers.