So what's the deal with MP3 and MP4? I probably wouldn't being going out on a limb by saying I'm sure many of you have already heard of them. Maybe you have an iPod or one of the many other available MP3/MP4 players on the market. It's quite possible that even your mobile phone has the ability to play MP3 and/or MP4.
Let's begin with MP3. MP3 is merely a digital audio format. It stands for MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) -1 Layer 3. Sounds more complicated than it really is. The MP3 format was primarily developed to greatly reduce the amount of data required to faithfully represent an original uncompressed audio recording. To be more specific, MP3 is roughly 1/10th the size of the original recording. It accomplishes this reduction in size by removing the pieces of audio that are deemed outside of the auditory resolution ability of most people. Yet despite it's reduction in size, MP3 suprisingly accomplishes an accurate rendition of the original piece, making MP3 the logic audio format for portable multi-media devices. Because the size of a single MP3 is approximately 1/10th the size of the same CD file, multi-media devices can store many more times the amount of MP3 files than their CD equivalents.
And last but certainly not least, MP4. Unlike MP3, MP4 is more than just a digital audio format. MP4, or MPEG - 4 Part 14 as it's referred to by engineers and geeks, is used to store both digital audio and digital video. Not only can MP4 be used to store audio and video, it may also be used to store subtitle information and still images. Furthermore, MP4 may be streamed over the Internet, which makes it a popular format for presenting video on websites.
So the next time you're at American TV or Best Buy in search of a portable media device, pay close attention to the audio and video formats it supports. Most MP4 players support both .mp4 and .mp3 files formats, while most MP3 players only support .mp3. Be an informed consumer and do your research before purchasing any portable multi-media device.
Like always, if you have any additional questions on today's topic our would like to suggest an upcoming article, please email me at techtalkinfo@gmail.com
