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AVI File Extension Details and Tips

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Maybe someone emailed you an AVI file but you're not sure how to use it. Perhaps you tried to open the AVI file but Windows told you that it could not open it. Before you can open an AVI file (assuming it's even a file format that's intended to be viewed or edited), you'll need to determine what kind of file the .AVI file extension refers to.

What is AVI

AVI is an acronym for Audio Video Interleave. This is basically a multimedia container format and was first released by software giant Microsoft in November 1992. This format was part of a larger package which was called "Video for Windows". As the name goes, the files of avi format can have both video as well as audio data within the space of a single file. This basically means that there can be a synchronized playback of both audio and video at the same. The avi format is like the DVD video format which allows a multiple streaming of data from both audio and video.

In usual, AVI can be created in two ways: compressed and uncompressed. However, uncompressed AVI files can come in a very large file size. While in the uncompressed mode there won't be any quality lost when recording or creating videos, shifting to that type is not recommended. It may seem to be the more advantageous option as it won't require any codecs to be played. But creating video files of such a type is not popularly done.

How to Play AVI videos

There are two basics:
1. Windows Media Player with correct codec installed (Windows PC)
2. 3rd-party AVI Players (especially For Macintosh computers)

Generally, to play an .avi file on your computer is very simple. You just need a program to read them. Either Windows Media Player will read them if you have the correct codec installed, or you can download third-party players like VLC player, KMPlayer and MPlayer that will allow you to play pretty much any video file.

Note: Sometimes, people found when playing AVI with Windows Media Player, the audio goes well but the video won't. If this is the kind of problem that you encounter, then it could be an issue with the codecs. In many cases, upgrading to the latest Windows Media Player would solve the problem. But if it still doesn't, try to download both the XviD and the DivX codecs so that the AVI will be played correctly.

Why Convert AVI files

As you see, AVI format is one of the oldest video formats. Since the day of it was developed there have appeared a lot of AVI codec's created by both vendors and individuals. So now there are hundreds of avi files that look similar but are completely different inside. That may cause trouble when playing or editing AVI files.

There are certain issues with the AVI files and this is especially prominent when it is being used with codecs like Xvid and DivX. This is because there is an unnecessary increase in the size of the file. Then another point is the fact that the AVI container file cannot support the modern features like B-Frames which are generally associated with MPEG-4 files. At times, hacks are utilized for the MPEG-4 subtitles and so on. But there are many problems which do occur. Then again. The AVI files do not have pixel ratio aspect information. Thus what happens is when the file is played it seems as if the frames are being stretched or maybe squeezed on a horizontal basis. There are other formats like QuickTime, Matroska, Ogg and MP4 and these are much more adaptable than the AVI files.

Why Choose Brorsoft AVI Converter

Due to the complex of the AVI container format, not all converting utilities in fact support all modifications of avi files. Not to get trapped, use Brorsoft AVI Video Converter.It converts almost all .avi files with ease keeping the best quality.

Using this best AVI converter, you can convert and edit AVI files and export videos in any other format including MKV, MP4, WMV, MOV, MPG, etc. You can also use it as an AVI player as well. Now you can convert your avi files and transfer them to iPod, iPhone, Nook HD, Galaxy Tab, etc portable devices; import to Windows Movie Maker, Final Cut Pro, iMovie, etc editing programs; upload to YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, etc sharing website... anywhere you want. For Mac users, please turn to AVI Converter for Mac, helping you encode/re-encode AVI on Mac OS X(Mountain Lion, Mavericks included).

Learn the full guide How to Convert AVI to MP4/MOV/WMV/MKV/FLV.

Related Guides:
How to Play AVI files with QuickTime on Mac
How to import AVI to Windows Movie Maker
How to import AVI files to Sony Vegas Pro

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