MP3 files – What is an MP3 file and how to open it?

N.L Tayoh

4 years ago

MP3 files – What is an MP3 file and how to open it? You probably have come across a file that has the .mp3 extension. This is even one of the most popular file types we come across nowadays. So, now, what is an MP3 file?

We will be telling you here in the detail What this file type is and as well list some Apps or software that can open such a file type.

Post Contents: hide

1 What is an MP3 file?

2 How to open an MP3 file?

2.5 Recommended for you:

What is an MP3 file?

MP3 is a coding format for digital audio developed largely by the Fraunhofer Society in Germany, with support from other digital scientists in the United States and elsewhere.

Originally defined as the third audio format of the MPEG-1 standard, it was retained and further extended — defining additional bit rates and support for more audio channels — as the third audio format of the subsequent MPEG-2 standard. A third version, known as MPEG 2.5 — extended to better support lower bit rates — is commonly implemented, but is not a recognized standard.

MP3 (or mp3) as a file format commonly designates files containing an elementary stream of MPEG-1 Audio or MPEG-2 Audio encoded data, without other complexities of the MP3 standard.

With regard to audio compression (the aspect of the standard most apparent to end-users, and for which it is best known), MP3 uses lossy data compression to encode data using inexact approximations and the partial discarding of data. This allows a large reduction in file sizes when compared to uncompressed audio.

The combination of small size and acceptable fidelity led to a boom in the distribution of music over the Internet in the mid-to-late-1990s, with MP3 serving as an enabling technology at a time when bandwidth and storage were still at a premium. The MP3 format soon became associated with controversies surrounding copyright infringement, music piracy, and the file ripping/sharing services MP3.com and Napster, among others. With the advent of portable media players, a product category also including smartphones, MP3 support remains near-universal.

MP3 files are supported by most portable music players, such as Apple iPod and Sony Walkman devices. They can also be read on the Amazon Kindle. Symbian OS mobile phones can play MP3 files using the UltraMP3 program.