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Video formats and video standards

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Video formats and video standards

First, let’s decide the video standards. They should be taken into account when creating a video movie or video.

PAL and NTSC standards
PAL is a video standard for analog color television used in Europe and Russia: 720×576 video size, 25 fps (25 frames per second).

NTSC is a standard for analog color television, developed in the USA, with a resolution of 720×480, 29.97 fps.

There is also the SECAM standard developed in France.

When creating a video in the editing program, converting it, burning it to a disc, make sure that the PAL standard is selected in our settings (if you live in Europe). Learn more about video standards.

At the time of writing this article (2010) this was very relevant, but now analog television is actively being replaced by digital and will soon be completely supplanted.

VHS – Analog Video is the format of video tapes, which was (and still is) seen on the VCR.

DV (Digital Video) is a video format jointly developed by the world’s leading video companies for digital recording. This format has a low video compression ratio (5: 1) and provides high quality video recording. In this format, video is recorded with MiniDV cameras.

The DV format is characterized by a large video stream and consequently has a large output video file. An hourly recording on a MiniDV cassette will have a volume of approximately 12-13 GB, or 1 minute – 200 MB.

The resulting video must be compressed for later viewing on a computer, projector, DVD player, on the Internet. Those. From the resulting high-quality video, we can obtain any format we need with the appropriate quality.

Attention! It should not be confused with the DVD (Digital Video Disc – DVD), a disc with digital information, what we call in the life of the DVD-ROM.

AVCHD – high definition video format, means: advanced video coding – advanced video coding, HD – high definition – high definition. This is the most modern format used in HD cameras. More >>

Compression standards
MPEG is one of the main compression standards. The abbreviation MPEG (Moving Pictures Expert Group) is the name of the international committee that develops this compression standard. Its varieties:

MPEG-1 – a compression format for compact discs (CD-ROM). The video quality is the same as that of a normal VCR, the resolution is 352×240, a disc with a movie in this format is usually designated as VCD (VideoCD). It is rarely used now.

MPEG-2 is a format for DVD, digital television. In this format, video is recorded with DVD, HDD and Flash cameras.

MPEG-3: not currently used. Do not confuse it with MP3 (MPEG Audio Layer 3) – audio compression technology.

MPEG-4 is a format obtained using the popular DivX, XviD, H.264, etc. codecs. It is often simply called MP4. It reduces the video stream even more than MPEG-2, but the picture is of decent quality, so this format is compatible with most modern DVD players. Of particular note is the high-quality video compressed with the latest-generation H.264 codec.

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HD (high definition) is a high definition format, a new format for high definition images. Currently, two varieties are used: with a resolution of 1280×720 and 1920×1080, both are designed for a frame with an aspect ratio of 16: 9 and a square pixel.

There is also the so-called anamorphic version of HD video with a resolution of 1440 x 1080 and an aspect ratio of 16: 9, which is explained by a rectangular pixel (1.33 aspect ratio).

Recently, most consumer cameras have been recording in HD format based on the MPEG-2 codec. The video quality is high, but to watch HD videos, you need to have the appropriate display equipment (for example, an LCD or plasma TV with a large diagonal), otherwise you will not be able to appreciate the video quality (watch and edit HD videos).).

Video file extensions
AVI
AVI (Audio-Video Interleaved) is an extension of a large number of video files, but it is not a format or codec. It is a container developed by Microsoft that can store 4 types of transmissions: video, audio, text and midi.

This container can contain video of any format from mpeg1 to mpeg-4, sounds of different formats, any combination of codecs is possible.

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What is video format and which one is better?

What is video format and which one is better?

If you went in and read this text, it is likely that you have already encountered the difficulties of video playback and the concept of video format. In this article, I would like to highlight common questions about what is a video format, what formats are there, and what is their difference, as well as give advice on how to choose the most convenient format to store your video.

Generally speaking, a video file is a set of still images that switch between each other at a certain frequency. Each image is a separate video frame. This is true when it comes to uncompressed videos. These video files take up a lot of disk space and it doesn’t always make sense to store them. And it makes sense when the video is of optimal quality and size. We can achieve this by using the desired format.

What is the video format?

The video format is determined by two parameters: a container file (in which the recording is stored) and the codecs (used to process sound and images)

What is a container file?

Consider the video recording process on any digital video camera. A video camera records sound and video in separate sequences (tracks), encoding each of them with a special program: a codec. Then both tracks are put into a special file, the same container file, where they are given a description. This information will further help the media player to correctly synchronize the image and sound when playing a video.

What is a codec?
A codec is a program that compresses when recording and decompresses multimedia information during playback: audio, video, etc.

So how are the formats different?

The content of the container file. For example, you can put multiple audio tracks and subtitles in an AVI container. And in the MKV container, you can pack whatever you want: any number of video and audio tracks, animated and test subtitles, fonts for them, and much more.

Codecs used. Despite the wide variety of codecs, each format is “friendly” or compatible only with certain audio and video codecs.

For example, an MPEG container only allows video compressed with MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 codecs. But its younger cousin, the MP4 container, is less demanding on connections: here the choice of codecs will be wider.

Many others stem from these two basic differences:

File size
video resolution
the ability to play videos online
picture quality
other…
There are formats that produce ultra-clear images and great sound, but take up a lot of disk space, and there are formats that cannot boast of video image quality, but take up very little space. Therefore, to the question: “Which of the video formats is better?” – everyone must answer for themselves. Depending on the characteristics of the device on which the movie or clip will be viewed, the best quality, the “clearest” or, for example, the most common format may be the best.

We recommend that you choose for yourself several “on duty” formats, which will be adapted to each one according to your needs. Here are the format guidelines for different storage locations.

Video for online storage:
YouTube, Vk, Facebook, Vimeo
Please use MP4 format with H.264 and AAC codecs. This setting provides the highest video quality with the smallest file size.
Other places
Most modern sites are “compatible” with MP4, FLV, AVI, and WebM, so choose one of them.
Video storage on computer:
If you have a powerful computer (see the specs below), protect your recording in MKV or MTS (M2TS) and enjoy excellent picture and sound quality
Intel, AMD (or compatible) processor with a frequency of at least 1 GHz.
1280×1024 screen resolution, 32-bit color (or higher).
1 GB of RAM for Windows XP, 2 GB for Vista, Windows 7 and 8.
NVIDIA® graphics with CUDA ™ technology support.
If your computer does not meet the above specifications, save the video with a video resolution of no more than 960×540 pixels in MP4, AVI, WMV format if it is Windows OS and MOV or MP4 if you have Mac OS X.
Video for storage on a mobile device:
Convert video for mobile phone with video converter. I recommend FormatFactory. It has many presets for popular models and a simple interface to help you convert your videos to the format you want.

Personally, I think that you should focus on popular video hosting sites like YouTube and Vimeo anyway, and compress videos with compression parameters similar to what these two giants use at home.

WHICH VIDEO FORMAT IS BEST AND WHY: A DETAILED DESCRIPTION

WHICH VIDEO FORMAT IS BEST AND WHY: A DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Not all video fans understand how some video formats differ from others. And in vain! After all, if you accidentally or intentionally install the wrong extension in the video editor while saving the project, then serious difficulties with the clip playback can arise. In this article, you will learn about the features of popular extensions and when and which one to choose.

What video format is better?

Learn about the characteristics of the formats, then you can watch videos on any device!

WHAT IS FORMAT
The format is the structure used to store data. Its designation is an identifier, separated by a period at the end of the name: .wmv, .avi, .mp4, etc.

For a video file, the media container and codec are responsible for the extension. When recording or rendering a movie, the data, including individual frames and an audio track, is compressed and placed in a special container. For later playback, the same video codec is used, which can decode information and display it in its original (or almost original) form. The media container itself cannot determine how the data is encoded, but it works fine with certain codecs. It also stores meta information about the object: size, duration, author, etc.

Both codecs and multimedia containers are involved in the recording and playback process, but the format is indicated precisely by the type of container used: AVI, MPEG-4, MKV and others. Codecs also have their own names: H.264, DivX, Theora. But most of the time they are distributed in packages, and the description does not indicate their names, but the media containers with which they work. This is a simplified answer to the question of what is a format. A more complex one involves many terms that are unnecessary for the average user.

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CONTAINERS?
In the simplest cases, they only store video and audio streams. In more complex ones, you can save multiple video tracks, synced subtitles, and chapter marks for quick navigation through content.

When choosing which format is best for converting video, you need to remember that certain media containers are used for minimal compression to get an accurate image, but this often results in a large size. Others compress the material more, saving space on the media. Some of them support tracks that are only compressed in specific ways. For example, MPEG-4 Part 14 works with files compressed with H.265 / HEVC, H.264 / AVC, and MPEG-4 Part 2.

WHICH VIDEO FORMAT IS BEST?
Almost any of the extensions have their own advantages, otherwise their existence would be meaningless. But when creating your own movie or, for example, choosing a movie to watch, you have to rely on two components: opportunity and prevalence.

Choose the format according to the device you will see the video on

Capacities mean the number of video tracks that will be stored there, subtitles, chapters, and more. The prevalence depends on the probability that a movie will run on a device without installing additional codecs. If you directly answer the question of which video format is better, then the answer will be one of the three most common: AVI, MKV or MP4.

What is the best video format?

What is the best video format?

What video format is better?

At the moment, you have a wide variety of options for storing and presenting digital multimedia information. There are many different video formats, each with its own unique characteristics. In such a situation, a natural question arises, which video format is better?

To convert any information into digital form, special programs are used – codecs. They create a special file – a container in which all the data is stored. These two concepts should not be confused, as they perform completely different functions.

The following codec definition can be found on Wikipedia. A codec is a special computer program that converts a stream of data or a signal for later use. Codecs transform the information available to store it more optimally and compactly. In this case, the main structure of the file (container) remains the same, only the way the data is presented changes. The most popular codecs for video recording are: DivX, XviD, MPEG2, H.264, etc. If you decide to record a movie or, for example, create a slide show online, you must decide which video codec to use.

XviD is a modern MPEG4 codec. Allows you to obtain high definition images in dynamic scenes. Therefore, when choosing a codec, proceed from the characteristics and characteristics of the video file itself. This will allow you to understand which video format is best for a particular case. Unlike DivX, XviD is free software released under the GNU license.

What video format is better?
DivX is one of the most popular video codecs. Provides high-quality images. The files converted with this codec are small and can be viewed on almost all modern DVD players. As of the fifth version, you paid for encoding.

H.264. Compared to the two previous video codecs, H.264 is more efficient and provides higher compression rates without sacrificing quality. However, as a general rule, this codec is absent from the computer initially and must be installed additionally.

MPEG2 is a popular video standard that is actively used in digital television to provide high-speed information transmission. In addition, the MPEG2 codec is used when recording DVD discs, as well as in video compression systems.

Let’s say you are faced with a specific practical task: creating a video slideshow. What is the best video format to record? First of all, you need to proceed from where you will use the created video file. For example, if you want to put a finished video on any video hosting service, use the H.264 codec, which allows you to get a significant degree of data compression with minimal loss of quality. AMS Software’s PhotoSHOW slideshow maker includes a full set of modern video codecs and enables you to make spectacular slideshows from professional-quality photos.

The codecs then convert the information into a special file called a container. A container is a kind of shell in which the information converted by codecs is stored digitally. The container structure is heterogeneous and includes several components: video stream, audio stream, various additional information (file information, titles, etc.). Therefore, the container itself cannot convert information, it only serves to store it. The most common containers are AVI, TS, MP4, MKV. Let’s look at some of them in more detail to answer the question, which video format is the best?

AVI (Audio-Video Interleaved): literally means “interlaced audio and video”. It is a universal container for storing information of various types. The AVI file can contain video, sound, text information, etc. Also, there can be multiple audio streams. When creating an AVI file, a wide variety of codecs can be used. This video format is superior to similar video standards due to the ease of use and the wide range of video recording capabilities.

MKV is a freely distributed container known as the “Matroska” project. This multimedia container allows you to store a large amount of a wide variety of information, including audio tracks in different languages, subtitles, it allows you to create special video chapters, etc. The main characteristic of this format is the openness of the code, which allows programmers from all over the world to edit and improve it. When comparing AVI with MKV, the latter video format is better than the former in most parameters. MKV container has all the necessary parameters to store video files and is becoming more and more popular

Video compression formats

Video compression formats

Before building a video surveillance system, a technician will have to solve a number of critical problems and tasks. Along with the choice of cameras, servers, and software, it is necessary to select the optimal compression format for the system’s video transmission. The main formats for video surveillance systems are MJPEG, MPEG-4 and H.264 (MPEG-4 part 10). Controversy “Which format is better?” Similar to the disputes “what is the future for: analog or ip?”, have been going on for several years, but experts still cannot reach a consensus. In this article we will talk about the characteristics of the formats, the parameters that must be taken into account when choosing, and the technologies used to analyze video streams.

Compress video

The videos from the IP surveillance cameras reach the server in compressed form. Compression generally involves removing features that are almost invisible to the human eye, although compression is sometimes done without loss of information. Compressed video stream requires less network bandwidth and less free hard disk space. To view or analyze the video, the resulting stream must be unzipped; apply the reverse conversion algorithm to compression. The combination of compression and decompression algorithms is called a video codec. Video codecs of different standards are not compatible with each other; video information compressed with one codec, as a rule, cannot be decompressed with another.

There are several types of compression.

Lossless compression allows you to obtain an image after decoding that does not differ from the original frame.
Lossy compression loses information after decoding.

Several lossy compression implementations are possible:

lossy percentage compression – loss is so insignificant to the human eye that the frame before and after decoding is virtually indistinguishable to the operator;
lossy compression – the differences between the frames before and after decoding are noticeable, but still not very pronounced, all the information necessary to analyze the events is saved;
Lossy Compression: Low-quality streaming video compression, causing artifacts (noticeable video distortion) during decoding. The appearance of artifacts leads to a decrease in image clarity, the appearance of fields of the same color (when different color tones are combined in one), the appearance of image blockages (pixelation, graininess). The presence of artifacts leads to false results of the analysis of the video stream by the system software.
In the compression process, to reduce the size of the video stream, the amount of color tones in the image are reduced, color resolutions are lowered, and small details in the image that are invisible to the human eye are removed; predict changes based on data already received; remove duplicate pixel values.

Video compression formats

There are many compression formats, MJPEG, MPEG-4 and H.264 are the most popular in video surveillance.

MJPEG format

For the MJPEG compression format, a video sequence is a sequence of still images: JPEG images. Compression occurs individually for each frame (intraframe). We get total independence from individual images. When playing a video file, the image quality is still good: from the MJPEG format you can always get frames with a clear image of the events that take place, it does not require high processor performance, but significantly loads the network and requires a large amount of disk space. This format is characterized by image blocking artifacts, fields of the same color. Camera data is lossy, so it’s impossible to say there is no distortion. Another thing is that if the camera is correctly adjusted, the human eye in JPEG hardly notices distortion.

MPEG-4 and H.264 formats

For MPEG-4 and H.264 formats, compression is performed both within a frame and for a series of frames (between frames). H.264 video (MPEG-4 optimized or MPEG-4part 10) is not a sequence of individual images, but a chain of related data – video streaming. The advantages of this format are that not all frames are saved, but only the reference image and its subsequent changes.

When a significant part of the image remains unchanged, the resulting video size is much smaller than for MJPEG. In case the MJPEG format can send a set of images of 200 KB each, the H.264 format will send a reference image of 200 KB and its subsequent changes, which are much smaller.

What is video format and which one is better?

What is video format and which one is better?

Digital video is increasingly included in our lives, and if a few years ago users were limited to watching movies and videos on the Internet, now these same users create video content themselves, and in quantities that not even film studios Hollywood could dream. Private video clips have filled the social networks Vkontakte, Facebook and now Instagram, YouTube video hosting is packed with newly created video channels and gigabytes of video uploaded to them.

Thanks to modern devices and software, working with video has become as easy as possible: editing, pasting, layering sound, as well as converting from one format to another, all of this is now done literally in a few clicks and does not require the user has extensive knowledge of the technical part of the process itself. … Maybe yes, which requires a little excursion, then these are video formats like MP4, AVI, WMV, MOV, as well as MKV (M2TS). Next, we will talk about what a video format is and take a closer look at each of them.

What is the video format?
The video format is the structure of the video data, how it is stored on the memory card, and with which video codecs it is encrypted. Depending on the format: MP4, AVI, etc., the structure of video files may differ significantly from each other. The structure is a container for the separate storage of audio, video, and text data, as well as service metadata. Some video formats, in their structure, can store several audio or video tracks, with different quality and sound. When watching, using a video player, the user can select one or another track to play (for example, in Russian or English).

video file structure

All data, both audio and video, is encoded with special audiovisual codecs, for example AAC and H.264. Depending on the quality of the sound and video, the size of the file, as well as the resource requirements of the device on which the file is played, may change.

Let’s look at various video formats and find out which video format is better, for this we will compare video formats on three parameters: quality, processing (playback) speed, and video file size. Also, before proceeding to the comparison, it is worth noting that you can always convert videos from one format to another using Movavi Video Converter.

All video formats
AVI
The oldest presented format is a Microsoft development, supports multi-stream audio and video, can contain data encoded by various video codecs. The main advantage is video playback on low-power devices, achieved due to the low compression ratio, from which the second advantage arises – good quality. But the size of the video file leaves a lot to be desired.

Video processing speed: 8 points (high);
Video file size: 1 point (low score);
Video quality: 8 points (good).
Overall score of 17 points.

MP4
It stands for MPEG-4 Part 14 and it is one of the most common formats. Today it is difficult to find a video device or video application that does not support this format.

Video processing speed: 6 points (average);
Video file size: 6 points (average);
Video quality is 7 points (above average), while viewing it, you may notice “apostrophes”, changes in shadows and contrast.
Overall rating of 19 points.

WMV
Another Microsoft development, the format that replaced AVI at the time, is proprietary and used only in the Windows operating system, but it is also quite widespread. The main advantages are the small file size and high video quality, while this format is quite demanding on device resources due to the high degree of data compression.

Video processing speed: 2 points (average);
Video file size: 8 points (average);
Video quality is 8 points (above average), during viewing, you may notice “apostrophes”, changes in shadows and contrast.
The total score is 18 points.

conclusion
We found out what video formats are, what they are and what they consist of, and we also examined some of them, comparing them in more detail based on three main criteria. In the benchmarks, the title of the best video format to date is MP4, with an overall rating of 19 points. Acceptable video processing speed, good quality and average video file size. Obviously, it is thanks to these qualities that this format has gained such popularity among users. So if you have AVI video that takes up a lot of hard drive space.

Video format comparison: MOV, FLV, MP4 and 3GP

Video format comparison: MOV, FLV, MP4 and 3GP

Each video file format has its own unique characteristics, which make it ideal for specific uses. This fact forces the user to have to choose between them more and more frequently. The most important criteria in making this decision is which characteristics of the file types best suit your specific needs. To help you choose the best type of video file, here is a list of the pros and cons of the most popular video formats.

The .mov video format

The MOV video file format was developed by Apple with the aim of bringing clear benefits to users. One of these advantages is the high quality of MOV videos. Cinema purists and filmmakers who want to create long digital movies, in particular, are determined by the quality preservation properties of the MOV format. When working with MOV files, optimal video quality will be maintained throughout the project. Although MOV is closely linked to Apple, the files can also be opened with Quicktime Player on Windows.

A major problem with MOV is the lack of support from the various media player applications. Many users have to download new software before they can play MOV video. Also, the files are very large, which requires more hard disk space. This can slow down old hardware.

Ultimately, .mov was designed for a specific group of users, especially those who value high video quality. Even if these files are generally used less frequently, they are of great value to a small target group.

The word ‘video’ is made up of many letter tiles.
With the right video format, projects can be implemented smoothly.

The .flv video format

The FLV video file format stands for Adobe Flash Videos. It is the most widely used type of video file on the Internet. The reason for the enormous popularity of .flv is that the format works optimally in all major browsers. Therefore, leading video portals like YouTube also use Flash videos by default. Another reason for the frequent use of FLV video files is that it is suitable for various video formats, including commercial ones.

There is also a downside to the FLV format: if a lot of Flash videos are hosted on a website, it can get slower overall. This is especially likely to be felt by visitors with slower Internet access. This is still a major problem at this time. As the Internet becomes more accessible, this concern will lessen in the future.

A man is editing a video on a laptop.
The FLV video format sadly affects the loading times of websites.

The video format .mp4

The MP4 video file format offers high-quality video. Unfortunately, the format is not ideal for a single task. But that doesn’t mean that these files don’t have many advantages as well. In fact, MP4 files are so small that they are ideal for storing in a video asset management system. Even at such a small size, the video quality is amazing. They are also great for sharing videos due to their high browser compatibility.

Therefore, it is quite paradoxical that the MP4 format is used as the standard in most photo and video cameras, as it scares filmmakers so much. The reason for this is that .mp4 files do not edit well. Without the proper properties that allow for proper editing and good editing, the MP4 video format does not meet the requirements of one of the potentially most important user groups.

A hand holding a camera lens in the forest.
MP4 videos retain high quality despite their small file size.

The .3gp video format

The 3GP video format corresponds to the Third Generation Partnership Project and is the associated file extension. It can be opened with many programs, is inexpensive in terms of memory requirements, and optimally protects data. It is ideal for mobile devices that cannot cope with high traffic when streaming video to each other.

Also, the .3gp file type has a dominant position in relation to video transmitted via text messaging services. This will continue despite certain weak points.

A key problem with 3GP relates to compression and the difficulties it presents. Users who care about maintaining video quality will be amazed at the end result of compression. Although this deficit is a necessary evil for the sake of functionality, many users still find it negative.

Get familiar with the big differences between video file types. This will allow you to make the right decisions for a successful implementation of future projects. Once you have a solid understanding of video formats, consider using a digital asset management system to manage your video files.

MAIN VIDEO FORMATS

When watching a movie with pictures or an explanatory video, the idea of the video format usually plays a secondary role or even does not play any role. However, the format does get interesting when it comes to marketing, placement or embedding of the video across the various channels.

So get familiar with the top nine video formats from our article and become a video format expert in no time.

Container and Codec.

Before dealing intensively with individual video formats, two basic terms should first be clarified:

Video formats are so-called file containers that adapt to different content. In addition to audio and video files, menu structures or subtitles can also be integrated into a container. When the movie plays, the elements of the container are decoded.

Files are compressed within the container using codecs, which affects the quality and size of the file. If a video is played, the files contained in the container are decompressed again using the corresponding codec.

Understanding the functions of containers and codecs is critical to understanding the following nine video formats.

MPEG-1 (.mpg / .mpeg).

MPEG stands for Motion Picture Expert Group, a group of experts who dealt with the subject of video compression as early as the 1980s. MPEG is both a container and a codec. MPEG-1 is the Video CD standard and is therefore out of date. The high storage requirements and the fact that HD (high definition) is not supported mean that MPEG-1 cannot compete with the newer video formats.

Advantages: high distribution, wide acceptance of devices.
Cons: Very outdated, poor video quality (not suitable for HD).

MPEG-2 (.mpg / .mpeg / .vob / .m2p / .ts).
MPEG-2 is the further development of MPEG-1 and is the basis for DVDs. The codec for the MPEG-2 format is called H.262. The file extension on DVDs is .vob, while the MPEG format for camera recordings is usually a .ts file.

Advantages: wide distribution, DVD standard.
Disadvantages: low compression, large file size.

MPEG-4 (.mp4).

The successor to MPEG-2 is the MPEG-4 format. Mp4 files are designed for high HD image quality with low storage capacity. The most common codec is the H.264 standard. In rare cases, DivX and Xvid codecs are used. MPEG-4 is widely used on HD TV and Blu-Ray. At Apple, .mp4 files can generally be found under the abbreviation .m4v. Videos posted on the Internet are usually in .mp4 format.

Advantages: standard on the web, high compression, high quality, flexible use.
Disadvantage: intensive computing power for encoding and decoding.

QuickTime (.mov).
QuickTime is a standard developed by Apple. The QuickTime architecture is the basis for various video editing programs such as Adobe Premiere or Final Cut (Apple’s editing program). MOV files are mainly used for editing and less for actual use. Apart from QuickTime Player, the format is compatible with some multimedia player programs.

Advantage: Standard for professional video editing.
Disadvantage: low acceptance by end devices.

AVI (.avi).
Audio Video Interleave (AVI) files were Microsoft’s answer to Apple’s QuickTime architecture. In the early years of the format, good image quality cost high storage capacities, which could be improved a bit with new codecs like DivX. AVI is accepted and reproduced by a large number of end devices, but it turns out to be bulky with many technical details. Direct transmission is not possible, menus and chapters are not supported, and there is no automatic way to save the correct aspect ratio.

Advantages: widespread use, wide acceptance.
Disadvantages: inflexible, bulky.

WMV / ASF (.wmf / .asf).
ASF is the successor to the AVI format. However, it is known as the WMV (Windows Media Video) codec. The Microsoft codec is similar to MPEG-4, but it is less common. Unlike the previous AVI, the transmission is possible without problems.

Advantages: High compression, good video quality.
Disadvantage: less common.

MKV (.mkv).
Matroska is a container format with the file extension .mkv. Its namesake is the Russian matryoshka dolls, which can be stacked on each other to save space and look cool. This same principle is the goal of the container. The video format allows for different codecs and additional information. Depending on the device, this flexibility can also be a problem during playback.

Video Formats A to Z – Everything You Need to Know About It

Codecs are not only available for video, but also for audio and images. For example, when the software needs to create a video file, it uses a codec for video and audio and creates a video file from it.

What are codecs?

Codecs, as their name suggests, encode (German = “encrypt” or “translate”) and decode (“decrypt”) information. The English word codec means a system of rules or agreements. Its origin is found in the English words En code (encoding) and De code (decoding). The codec “translates” a video from one format, which can be the original or an already encoded format, to other video formats and vice versa.

The task of the codec is to “know” how the data is compressed and how it can be restored (= replayed). Playback software and programs, for example Windows Media Player or the free-to-use, portable VCL player, benefit from codecs.

Often times, it can automatically recognize the codec in a file and find the correct codec to play it back. Or put another way: as long as a player recognizes the codec and has access to it, they can play the corresponding file. In this case, the user cannot make any difference in what video format a video file is available.

A professional video or movie is never tied to a specific compression method or video codec and formats. Depending on the application (distribution on TV, such as web content or on Blu-Ray Disc), a movie or video can appear in many different forms.

From a technical point of view, a codec is a pair of algorithms that encodes or decodes digital data.

Tech professionals will find that some of the formats in this article are called codecs, but not strictly codecs. In a more strict sense, a codec is only defined as a codec if there is an encoder on one side and a decoder as a “counterpart” on the other. If it is only encoded or only compressed, or vice versa, only decoded or only decompressed, this does not correspond to the scientific definition of a codec. However, this distinction is ignored in everyday video formats.

Codecs determine how data is compressed.

What does compression mean?

With today’s technology standards, the image information of an average high definition movie is at least 131GB, without sound. This amount of data makes it impossible for a movie to fit on a commercially available data medium (Video DVD, Blu-ray Disc).

The smaller the amount of data in a video file, the easier it will be to stream, edit, or save that file. However, at the same time, the quality of a movie or video should not be visibly reduced. Therefore, compression algorithms use sophisticated mechanisms and simplify and summarize the data. From an algorithmic point of view, the “least important” information is not saved. They are lost during the compression process and can no longer be rebuilt by decompression.

The newer codecs achieve sensational compression rates of up to 1: 500. Older video compression methods, still used today in the form of older codecs, can, conversely, “only” achieve values of 1: 5 (= 100 times worse!).

Video compression originates from the compression of a single image (so-called still image compression). Codecs for single image compression optimize each image individually and one after the other. Modern video formats thus achieve a compression ratio of 1:10 on all video.

Newer codecs have optimized this process: they use similarities between individual partial images wherever they exist, resulting in huge savings potential at 25 individual images per second. This can also be seen in the compression rates, which with the new methods are well above 1: 100, and this with little loss of quality.

Video encoding and compression processes for video formats will only gain market acceptance if the largest possible group of users can use them. That is why there are not only codecs established by global corporations like Microsoft and Apple, but also codecs that have been standardized by international organizations. The best known body of this type is the Moving Expertes Group (MPEG). Good to know: because MPEG cooperates with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), for example, cooperating partners assign different names to identical procedures. This is why H.264, MPEG-4 AVC, MPEG-4 / Part 10 or ISO / IEC 14496-10 are the same format.

What are video formats?

The term explains how video data is or has been recorded on a data carrier. The type of video data recording is basically defined by four different reference points. These are:

the movie format (image resolution and aspect ratio). Check out Part 1 of this article series titled Film Formats
the refresh rate (also called the refresh rate). The frame rate is specified in hertz (Hz) or as fps (frames per second, German = images per second)
color depth, which describes the ability to differentiate between color values and brightness values
the soundtrack
Regardless of the purpose for which you want to create a video, the video format determines its quality and usability.

The data formats are NOT the same as the video formats. The data format establishes how video data is presented in a purely technically structured manner and is read (interpreted) by software on a computer system for processing.

Data formats have nothing to do with video format, movie formats, frame rates, color depths, and sound. Normal users rarely come into contact with data formats when communicating with movies and videos. The situation is different with data and video formats.

Video formats (“formatted videos”) can be identified by their file extensions (for example, * .mp4 or * .mov or * .mpg). Video formats can be classified according to different criteria, depending on the subject: for example, according to the size and quality of the file (compression) or according to the content type of a file (container formats).

Movie format / aspect ratio difference

Just as data formats represent different things, the terms movie format and video format are NOT identical. In film format in which the question is understood thereafter for film and video, size and in what aspect ratio a film or video is on a recorded disc. Movie format and rotation formats are synonymous, while recording format, image format, image size, and projection format as subgroups further specify the term movie format.

Why is the video format important?

The video format is not important. But only if you watch your videos directly on your smartphone or upload your own videos directly to the Internet. But anyone who wants to communicate professionally with videos will want to edit their movies and will quickly have to deal with not only the content, but the technical quality as well.

Even those who “only” want their movies to be accessible to the public via YouTube or Vimeo or who want to embed their social video on their website via one of these video platforms will notice at the latest that there is something like a technical framework if the video file is not sent to upload is accepted. YouTube, for example, succinctly reports in this case: Before you can upload these types of files, you need to convert them to YouTube-compatible video formats. (The next chapter on conversion provides information on what this means and means.)