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What kind of video file types exist?

Each operating system provides the user with dozens and dozens of different codecs, each useful for encoding and decoding a specific type of file.

Among the most commonly used codecs are FFmpeg, DivX, Xvid, H.264 and its evolution H.265, VP9 and VP 10 (also known as Google codecs).

Containers have the task of packaging the audio and video stream processed by the codecs and making it usable for the media player software.

Among the most commonly used are: Avi, Wmv, Mov, Flav and Mp4.

Let's see two of the most common used file extensions: AVI and MP4

Although AVI and MP4 are both containers for storing multimedia files, the main difference between them is not the formats themselves, but the types of codecs used within the files.

Differences between AVI and MP4

codecs: A big difference between AVI and MP4 is that AVI is only for HD and Full HD files while MP4 can contain 4K Ultra HD video.
Subtitles: AVI cannot contain subtitles, but can contain SubRip, SubStation Alpha and XSUB via third-party modes and DivX. But MP4 supports two types of subtitles, namely MPEG-4 Timed Text and VobSub.

Similarities between AVI and MP4

Apart from the differences, let us also discover the similarities between AVI and MP4.

Quality: Both AVI and MP4 can maintain the current highest quality of video files. Therefore they are both considered the most commonly used container formats for saving high-quality favourite videos.

Size: For maximum video quality, MP4 compression is rather small in file size. AVI formats, on the contrary are large in file size.

Compatibility: The two file formats are compatible with most media players and mobile devices. You can play AVI and MP4 on iOS/Android phones, game consoles, media players, storage devices and more.