How do MP3 player/media player work

Posted by : surfboard extreme Saturday, July 6, 2013

How do MP3 player/media player work

MP3 is short for Motion Picture Experts Group 1, Audio Layer 3 - the standard technology and format for compressing a sound sequence into a very small computer file (about a twelfth of the original size), while still sounding like a faithful reproduction of the original to most listeners.

Loading music

Transferring music from your PC to the player is not a complicated process. Software is provided with most MP3 players (or downloaded from the manufacturer’s website), which enables music to be transferred via a cable. This same software will also convert music on a CD played in your computer into MP3 format, subject to copyright, in a process known as ‘ripping’. You will need an internet connection to download music from online stores such as iTunes. Find out more about downloading music in our expert article.

Loading movies

As the law currently stands, it’s illegal to circumvent the copy protection on DVD or Blu-ray discs, even for fair use purposes. This means even if you own the latest blockbuster DVD, there is no option with the supplied software to ‘rip’ the movie to your player.

The iTunes store sells movies as well as individual episodes of popular TV shows. Some MP3 players also offer compatibility with BBC iPlayer, so you can download that episode of EastEnders you missed for playback when and where you want.

Owners of Blu-ray players might be interested to know an increasing number of Blu-ray movie titles are being released with a ‘digital copy’ included on a separate DVD disc. This ‘iPod-friendly’ version of the film can be imported directly into iTunes via your computer’s DVD drive for transfer to your player.

Connections

MP3 players typically connect using USB, USB 2.0 or FireWire ports. Transferring a song via USB 2.0 or FireWire is twice as fast as USB and takes a matter of seconds. Top of the range players have built-in Wi-Fi, enabling you to purchase music from online music retailers through your wireless broadband router, or while out and about through public Wi-Fi ‘hotspots’.