You have probably heard at least the first of the two terms, MP3, because the small devices with this format are now widespread. Most stereo and hi-fi equipment, as well as DVD players, also support the format.

MP3 is an audio code that compresses sound files, i.e. shrinks them, so that their storage takes up less space. The good thing about this is that the sound quality does not suffer and hardly any differences from the original can be heard during playback.

The only disadvantage so far, at least in the eyes of the music production industry, has been that pirated copies also remain easily audible in this format and it is very costly to install copy protection. This is why music piracy has been able to expand almost without limits, which is associated with huge financial losses for the music industry.

A small MP3 device can have different capacities, the size of which is measured with the MB, i.e. megabyte, known from the computer world and now also in the even larger unit on the scale, i.e. GB, i.e. gigabyte. In recent years, devices have become more and more advanced and their capacity, just as with computers, has skyrocketed. Devices from the luxury class can already boast more than 30 hours of playtime and a capacity of about 8GB.

For a long time now, the devices have not only been able to store and play music, but some of them are equipped with a multitude of functions, roughly comparable to those of a small handheld computer. They can play audio and video formats and store photos and other data.

MP3 devices are usually supplied with files from the computer using a USB cable, and some even convert file formats to suit.

What is MP4?

MP4 is the successor to MP3 and as such many times more potent. First of all, the format has been extended especially to the reproduction of compressed video signals, i.e. in addition to music, videos can also be stored and played.

However, MP4 formats are also being developed that will make it possible to incorporate general copy protection into music productions in order to put an end to piracy. This is to be done with the help of a watermark that severely restricts the sound quality when copied.

Although most devices today still support both formats, i.e. MP3 and MP4, it is hoped that further development will soon put a stop to piracy.