Video file formats
What is an AVI (Audio Video Interleaved) file?
The standard video format for Windows computers is AVI. The file is stored in a multimedia filesystem
that contains audio and video using a range of codecs.
An AVI file employs less compression to save files and occupies more space than several other video
formats. AVI files can be prepared without the need for compression at all. This renders the data lossless,
which results in tremendously bigger file sizes – around 2-3 GB every minute of video. A lossless file
will not deteriorate quality with time, no matter how often you access or save the file. This also enables us
to play without the usage of any codecs.
AVI works with nearly every web browser on Windows, Mac, and Linux machines. Developed by
Microsoft, AVI offers the highest quality but also large file sizes. It is supported by YouTube and works
well for TV viewing.
Playing a .AVI video:
it requires specific applications to launch it. You can easily play AVI files on the VLC Media Player by
simply uploading them to its platform. The VLC Media Player is very versatile and adaptable to many
platforms, including Windows, Mac, and Linux.
.AVI structure:
The structure of the AVI file format is based on the Resource Interchange File Format (RIFF). This file
format organizes all the information in a specific file into blocks or "chunks". Each chunk can be labelled
AVI. The AVI file is then broken into sections.
The AVI files have a fairly simple structure. These files must have at least two necessary components: a
header and information chunks. The file's header provides metadata such as file size, frame rates, and
other such information, whereas chunks hold actual audio and video data. The header is recognized with
the "hdrl" tag, while the audio/visual content is identified with the "movi" tag.
Advantages of AVI:
1. The audio fidelity of AVI video is superb.
2. Unlike other audio/video formats, the DV-AVI standard may be compressed to make it
compatible with the DV standard.
3. Because the AVI file format was created by Microsoft, it is compatible with all major Microsoft
and non-Microsoft operating systems.
4. AVI files may be used to produce playable DVDs and CDs by storing initial audio/video
information.
5. The AVI file type does not require any specific hardware or software programme to execute. This
immediately increases the number of people who can open AVI files.
6. Because of its compression characteristics, AVI is the most extensively used AVI video format
for promos, short films, and ads.
Disadvantages if AVI:
1. Compared to other file formats, AVI files can be quite huge if they are not compressed.
2. You must be ready to sacrifice disc space for the merits of the AVI file, as you will be unable to
store as many files.
3. If you compress AVI files online over specific restrictions, you may lose some of the video
quality. Given that current viewers today are using displays capable of HD, Ultra HD and 4K, the
endurance for this loss of video quality could be reduced.
4. Because there are so many codecs available, even while good AVI compression is achievable,
you must experiment to acquire the quality and compression you want.
5. AVI does not allow for user interaction.
What is MP4?
MP4 is a widely used multimedia file storage format used for storing video and streaming. It is an
international standard that works with a vast range of devices. MP4 refers to the digital container file that
acts as a wrapper around the video.
MP4 allows a proficient level of compression without compromising image quality.
Advantages:
Standard on the web, high compression, high quality, flexible use.
Disadvantage:
Intensive ability needed for encoding and decoding.
AVI vs. MP4:
While AVI appears to be the superior media container in terms of quality, it has exceedingly high file
sizes, which may need reduction to lower file formats. MP4, on the other hand, utilizes smaller files and
works with practically all media players but has a lower video output quality relative to AVI.
one of AVI problems is the uneven compression standard, which results in a plethora of compatibility and
playback concerns. For example, later versions of Windows Media Player are unable to view AVI videos
encoded using previous codecs. Meanwhile, the older version of WMP cannot play AVI films encoded
with the current codecs on Windows. Briefly, it's antiquated.
MP4 is a completely other story. MPEG creates many standards for compressing and encoding
multimedia data, and the encoded movies are known as MPEG format. The term "responsibility" refers to
the act of determining whether or not a person is responsible for his or her own actions. As a result, MP4
is supported by practically all software and hardware devices.
MP4 easily wins in terms of compatibility.
Python script, which convert AVI to MP4 format:
import subprocess
import os
src = './src'
dst = './mp4'
for root, dirs, filenames in os.walk(src, topdown=False):
#print(filenames)
for filename in filenames:
print('[INFO] 1',filename)
try:
_format = ' '
if ".mp4" in filename.lower():
_format=".mp4"
if ".avi" in filename.lower():
_format=".avi"
inputfile = os.path.join(root, filename)
print('[INFO] 1',inputfile)
outputfile = os.path.join(dst, filename.lower().replace(_format, ".mp4"))
subprocess.call(['ffmpeg', '-i', inputfile, outputfile])
except:
print("An exception occurred")
