How to configure AVQueuePlayer?

Asked on 09/02/2024

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To configure an AVQueuePlayer, you can follow these general steps:

  1. Initialize the AVQueuePlayer: Create an instance of AVQueuePlayer with an array of AVPlayerItem objects. Each AVPlayerItem represents a piece of media you want to play in sequence.

    let playerItem1 = AVPlayerItem(url: URL(string: "https://example.com/video1.mp4")!)
    let playerItem2 = AVPlayerItem(url: URL(string: "https://example.com/video2.mp4")!)
    let queuePlayer = AVQueuePlayer(items: [playerItem1, playerItem2])
    
  2. Add or Remove Items: You can add or remove items from the queue as needed using insert(_:after:) to add and remove(_:completionHandler:) to remove.

    let playerItem3 = AVPlayerItem(url: URL(string: "https://example.com/video3.mp4")!)
    queuePlayer.insert(playerItem3, after: playerItem1)
    
  3. Control Playback: Use methods like play(), pause(), and advanceToNextItem() to control playback.

    queuePlayer.play()
    
  4. Observe Player Status: You can observe the player's status and the current item to handle events like playback completion or errors.

    queuePlayer.addObserver(self, forKeyPath: "status", options: [.new, .initial], context: nil)
    
  5. Handle Events: Implement the observer method to respond to changes in the player's status or the current item.

    override func observeValue(forKeyPath keyPath: String?, of object: Any?, change: [NSKeyValueChangeKey : Any]?, context: UnsafeMutableRawPointer?) {
        if keyPath == "status" {
            if queuePlayer.status == .readyToPlay {
                // Player is ready to play
            } else if queuePlayer.status == .failed {
                // Handle error
            }
        }
    }
    

For more detailed information on AVFoundation and media playback, you might find the session Discover media performance metrics in AVFoundation helpful, especially the section on subscribing to events.