A small, self-contained web app for reading movie subtitles on your phone while
the movie plays on a TV. Load an .srt or .vtt file, press play the moment the
movie starts, and adjust the sync to line up with the dialog. Everything runs in
your browser; nothing is uploaded anywhere.
Live: https://spencerlee.net/subtitle-player/
I made this so I could watch movies on a TV while in another country that doesn't have English subtitles on their streaming platforms. There are many apps for overlaying subtitles onto a video on your computer or phone, but surprisingly I couldn't find a single one that handles only subtitles.
It turns out that subtitle files are incredibly simple plaintext (as they should be!), so it was very simple to make a subtitle player using a small amount of HTML/JavaScript, which can be hosted on a static site.
The player ships as an installable Progressive Web App. Open the live URL in a mobile browser and choose Add to Home Screen; it then launches full-screen with its own icon and runs entirely offline, indistinguishable from a native app in daily use. On desktop Chrome an install icon appears in the address bar.