MPEG-4 is a revolutionary format which enables the capability of smaller file sizes and it makes media more compatible with different speeds than the one it was originally made for. It was finalized in 1998 and is now standard since the year 2000. It can handle 3d objects, sprites, text and other file types. It was made by the same people who made MPEG-1, as it is quite a fine-tuned format.



The main websites that you'll find use the MPEG-4 are sites that have trailers of upcoming movies and sometimes long trailers which are rarely found. MPEG-4 is used on many devices such as iPods and Satellite Television which many of us still use today and tomorrow. MPEG-4 brings higher levels of interaction with content, controlled by the content developers. It also brings multimedia to new types of networks, including those employing relatively low bit rates, and mobile ones.

The DivX Codec can be quite easily related to the MPEG-4 format as Windows Media Player cannot play MPEG-4 Encoded Files unless the Codec exists Its basically compression but in a quite safe and secure environment.

MP4 is a format used by PSP since it has more capabilities than MP3 and below also it's got support from a variety of programs which are explained below. The most frequent players of the MP4 File Type are iTunes, Quicktime and Winamp.

Media player classic can be related to Windows Media Player as it uses the old style interface but beneath the makeup, it's a completely new application as it can be an alternative to Microsoft's Default Player.

Mplayer is another application which supports the format but has the special unique feature of it being usable on different platforms which includes windows itself. It has a clean but robust skin showing that much work has gone into this product. The project was started in the millennium which in this case shows a relatively new product.

Another unusually frequent player is RealPlayer with its silver skin and its many features which keep it very alive which includes the message center that informs you of news such as new music.

Winamp is used quite a lot as it is used quite a lot and is much older than Mplayer by 3 years. It has 52 million users which is quite a large amount for such a simple product.

KSP Sound Player is for windows and has support for a range of file types which includes its simplistic interface.

iTunes and Quicktime come as one package from apple and are originally made for apple computers, iTunes is generally used for iPods whilst Quicktime for both Videos and Audio