Why are there different video formats? Basically, because in its raw state is too large. Because of this, it needs to be reduced in byte size to facilitate its storage on the hard disk or its transfer over the internet. Some manufacturers create formats specific to their systems and devices.
This ensures minimal loss of video quality when playing and facilitates future updates. One way to compress one while maintaining the same resolution has a simple logic. Each captured frame only records changes from the previous one. For more information check https://videoconverter.wondershare.com/. For example, in an interview where guests are standing, there is no need to store the scenario with each new frame.
Dozens of video formats are found on the internet:
Another way to reduce the size of a video file is to decrease its resolution in the compression process (for example, from 1,920 x 1,080 to 640 x 480). And finally, decreasing the number of frames per second also generates a smaller final file (eg, from 29.7, NTSC standard, to 15 FPS).
The downside to this is that devices and players from a particular company usually only play their standard format or the most popular ones. In the case of micros, the quick solution to not having to install a codec for each size is to use universal players (eg VLC Player). With this explained, here is a list of the extensions of the formats most commonly found in video files and their main features. See below:
1 – AVI:
AVI (Audio Video Interleave) was developed by Microsoft. It is one of the oldest formats, created in 1992. It has no single specification for converted videos. Thus we can find files in this type with different resolutions and audio quality rates (bitrate). Many camcorders record natively on Avi. The default player of this format is Windows Media Player.
2 – MOV:
The MOV format can be considered the direct “competitor” of Avi. Its technology is the result of Apple’s QuickTime system. Like AVI, there is flexibility in configuration options for MOV-converted videos. You can use converter.app to convert AVI videos to MOV. And its use is not restricted to Mac computers but can be seen without difficulty on Windows computers. One of its advantages is the ability to generate extremely small files without major loss in quality. The default player of this format is QuickTime Player (Mac or PC).
3 – WMV:
Windows Media Video (WMV) is a package of video compressors from Microsoft. Its power to generate small files with as little quality loss as possible outweighs its AVI predecessor. This format is widely used for streaming content over the web as it allows you to start viewing a video without first downloading it completely (streaming data). But it can also be found in high definition videos (eg Blu-Rays on WMV9). The final formats generated by the compressors of this format can be either .wmv or. Asf (Advanced System Format).
4 – MP4:
The MPEG-4 is part of the motion pictures expert group (MPEG) group. It is currently used as the default compression method for many developers. MP4 can be used for both downloadable and streaming videos. A wide range of portable devices (iPod, PSP, and Zune) and modern DVD players are natively compatible with this format. The famous DivX and XviD are video encoders for MP4 format and differ mainly from the latter being open source.
5 – 3GP and 3G2:
3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) is a version similar to MPEG-4. However, its purpose is to compress video files for playback on mobile devices. The difference between the 3gp and 3g extensions is that one is optimized for GSM technology phones and the other for CDMA phones, respectively. If you want to play a favorite video constantly on your smartphone, always choose to convert it to this format.
