Ever since the evolution of the camera, and the availability of quality camera in smartphones, video recording has become quite a common phenomenon. The thing is that video recording was earlier limited to camera and their expensive quality cameras. But, nowadays, even a simple smartphone comes with a quality camera that gives a realistic video recording feature.
Any memorable moment can be recorded easily on smartphones and stored. Nowadays, there are multiple formats in which videos can be stored in the free space that any user system has. These formats allow the user to keep the videos for as long as they want, in their smartphone, laptop, etc. 2 of these formats are MP4 and MPEG. There are many kinds of MPEG formats and similarly, there are many parts of MP4 too.
MP4 vs MPEG
The main difference between MP4 and MPEG is that MP4 can store subtitles, still images, and certain other kinds of information along with video while MPEG is limited to videos only.
Comparison Table Between MP4 and MPEG
| Parameter Of Comparison | MP4 | MPEG |
| File extension | The file of this format ends with “.mp4”. | The file with this format will end in “.mpeg” or “.mpg”. |
| Compression method | These files are compressed with MPEG-4 compression methods which contain many parts, most common being MPEG-4 Part 14. | These files are compressed using MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 compression methods. |
| Storage Capacity | Along with the video file created, subtitles, still images, and many other things can be stored in this format. | This format stores only video files and support no other data. |
| Usage | They are used to create high-quality videos that are streamed on computers, smartphones, etc. | Their usage is limited to DVDs and standard digital television broadcasting or Video Compact Discs (VCDs) for low-quality video. |
| Problem | MP4 is quite popular in today’s world and hence, you can stream videos online easily without much hassle of conversion. | MPEG formats are more suitable if the user seeks to implement the use of DVDs and VCDs and also, the quality is not that good. |
What Is MP4?
The filename extension that is kept for this type of file is “.mp4”. This filename extension is the most common one that can be associated with videos and therefore, is supported by most of the platforms. The format is specially designed to store high-quality video and the audio is encoded using the AAC compression technique. The video is compressed using the MPEG-4 compression technique.
The MPEG-4 has many parts within it. These parts determine the quality of the .mp4 file. The compression can be done using any of these parts but, the best quality can be obtained by MPEG-4 Part 14. The most valuable part of this format is that it can store multiple types of data. This is why most people like to use the MP4 format.
The thing is that the MP4 format can be used to store multiple pieces of information about a file. This means that one can store the subtitles, still images, and some more data. This is the best feature of the MP4 format that is loved by most people. The thing is that there are many types of compression platforms of the format and hence, it is quite easy to use it.
MP4 format is developed by Moving Picture Experts Group. It is the most popular type of format that is used in the current world. It stores high-quality video that can be streamed anywhere over the internet or shared over any platform. While the format is hassle-free, it is quite useful too.
What Is MPEG?
MPEG is another platform that is developed by Moving Picture Experts Group and is standardized by the company. The format is not as popular as the other format in comparison. The compression formats used in this case are MPEG-1 and MPEG-2. The first one, ie, MPEG-1 is used in the cases where the user wants to work with VCDs or Video Compact Discs. The second one is used in the case where the user wants to store a video on a DVD.
The filename extension for the MPEG format is “.mpeg” or “.mpg” and is mostly seen when working with movies. The movies stored in DVDs are mostly stored in this format while the format is also used in standard broadcasting of video via television. But, the thing is that the format does not follow the high quality of the video.
Main Differences Between MP4 and MPEG
- MP4 is more widely used because it supports high-quality video and audio via the AAC compression technique.
- The compression technique used in MP4 is MPEG-4 while the compression used in MPEG is MPEG-1 and MPEG-2.
- The major difference is that mp4 has the ability to store subtitles and other data while MPEG doesn’t have this trait.
- While the MPEG has the filename extension of “.mpeg’ or “.mpg” the MP4 data has the extension of “.mp4”.
- MP4 is most commonly found in the streaming of videos online while MPEG is found only in places where television broadcasting and movie storing are involved.
Conclusion
In conclusion, we can say that many have supported the use of MP4 because it is more volatile, and also, is more flexible. In the terms of usage, the MP4 supports better audio compression and is, therefore, preferred. If we take into account, the MPEG format, the compression technique is not that good, and hence, they are commonly not supported by many platforms.
Therefore, in many cases, the users have to take the help of a converter, which can convert their video to MP4. After the conversion of MPEG to MP4, the video is worked upon. Not many softwares too, support the use of MPEG. But, the televised videos are in that format because in that case, quality can be a little bit degraded.
While most people stream videos and movies online in MP4, MPEG is supported by most of the video players and hence, movies are directly uploaded from DVDs, in MPEG format.
References :
- https://search.ieice.org/bin/summary.php?id=e103-d_1_2
- https://books.google.com/bookshl=en&lr=&id=ftRvA08WcM4C&oi=fnd&pg=PR19&dq=what+is+mpeg+format&ots=l_3nAYOnOv&sig=FaqvFoiYr-gSIUWvjumaikm7Za0