Audio Video Interleave (video format)

Description

AVI: The Old Style That Prescribed Digital Video

Ever tried to look at what’s at the end of the video you’re playing in your computer file that you yourself opened? This is one of the common, old video formats you can see around. AVI stands for “Audio Video Interleave.” Well, this format has long been existing for years now and it was one of the major things used to come up with what we today have for digital media.

Let’s discover what AVI is – its history, how it works, and its place within the current rapidly changing landscape of multimedia formats today.

AVI: What is it?

Audio Video Interleave (AVI) was introduced as a multimedia file format created by Microsoft in 1992 as part of their Video for Windows software suite. This was notably a breakthrough during this time since it was among the initial formats that could house both audio and video data within one file.

In a nutshell, AVI is what’s called a container format. That is, it specifies how audio and video should be stored rather than how they should be encoded (compressed). Think of it as a box that can store and keep in step with varied file types; for example, a video stream and one or more audio tracks.

Digital video was in its infancy in the early 1990s. At the beginning, there was many formats, but most were either too large or lacked synchronization of sound and video. Microsoft was looking for what format would let them play sound and video together most conveniently, in Windows computers especially.

To handle that, AVI was made. Within a hiccup, many global users took it on as their default video format since it provided a common methodology of marrying multimedia content.

An AVI file multiplexes audio and video data streams. Or in simpler terms, interlaces both streams so that they can synthesize playback complete with the sound corresponding to the image frame by frame. The interweaving of these two streams is what ‘Audio Video Interleave’ stands for.

AVI, a container, supports many codecs since video and audio streams are compressed using a codec in their size is reduced, and they are decompressed by a codec when played.

Commonly used codecs with AVI files include:
DivX
Xvid
MJPEG
Intel Indeo

It is also very important to remember that two AVI files might behave very differently depending on the codec with which they were created. Thus, since the file may be encoded using a codec not supported by the device’s player, this might lead to issues when playing some AVI videos on the given devices.

Benefits related to AVI Format

AVI remains relevant in several sectors due to a number of benefits, notwithstanding its age:

Playback of high quality: The professional editing will benefit from the high quality of uncompressed video supported by AVI.

Broad Compatibility: AVI files are compatible with virtually all media players, including VLC and Windows Media Player.

Simple Structure: AVI has uncomplicated architecture and so is the most reliable option for video editing and archiving.

Drawbacks of the AVI Format

But there are some disadvantages in AVI, especially in modern multimedia:

Big files: AVI files can become really big, especially when they carry good quality audio and video and are not compressed properly.

Limited Streaming Capabilities: AVI does not have all that stuff about online streaming of subtitles, chapters, and metadata other formats like MP4 have.

Unavailability on Some Devices: Most of the times AVI files do not open over smartphones and other present-day devices unless it is converted or an application for the respective format is installed.

AVI Today

Though being squeezed by newer formats such as MP4, MKV, MOV, etc., AVI has lost none of its prevalence today. AVI stays in broad application owing to convenience and quality, which has attracted many video editors and film archivists, not to mention numerous CCTV setups with the need for ‘good-quality’ footage.

Also, they are not proprietary and can readily be accessed and even edited, rendering them quite ideal as initial video production or raw footage. There are still some professionals who would rather record in AVI and then convert their recordings to more compressed formats for sharing or publication.

Is AVI Still Useful?

If you're:

Producing raw video for editing,

Using outdated hardware or software,

or quality is more important than file size,

then AVI is certainly a great option.

However, if you're:

If you put videos online, and if data has to be transferred between devices or if there's a need for compression, streaming, and subtitles, you may derive more benefit from the newer formats such as MP4 (H.264).

In finality,

Its age
makes AVI an enduring reputation
in digital technology.

It introduced the concept of putting together video and audio into one file-a practice now widely observed. Familiarity with AVI will make you value good the comforts brought about by digital video whether as a student, video editing professional, or an average person using video applications.

From huge files on Win95 to smooth 4K streaming, it all started with pioneers like AVI, just laboring in obscurity, one frame at a time.