What's in my MP3 player? Trivia Quiz

Answer: MPEG Audio Layer 3

The MPEG standards define ways of compressing digital audio, so you can squeeze more songs into less space. MP3, by the way, is a "lossy" compression, which means that if you were to expand an MP3 song and compare it to the original, they wouldn't necessarily be identical. The differences are supposed to be inaudible, though, and the space savings are considerable.

Answer: Carbon-Zinc

Carbon-Zinc batteries can't be recharged, and must be discarded when they lose power. MP3 players usually use Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries, instead of the older Nickel-Cadmium (NiCad) batteries.

Answer: a cable connected to the computer's USB port

The Universal Serial Bus (USB) is a convenient, if slightly slow, way to transfer data from and to computers. The USB bus was the most common way to copy songs onto MP3 players, and to transfer pictures from digital cameras to the computer, although has been superseded by newer technology since.

Answer: flash memory

Flash memory is used in MP3 players, cameras and thumb drives, among other places. The memory chip is non-volatile, so your songs don't disappear when the MP3 player is turned off.

MP3 players can hold a lot of music. The amount of music depends on the length of the songs, and the way that they are compressed, but a 1GB MP3 player will hold well over 150 songs. That's over ten hours of music in a box that's smaller than a deck of cards.

Answer: From the song file

Besides defining how the song is compressed, the MP3 standard defines where the song's title, artist information, album, and other useful information is stored. When the player starts up, or when new songs are loaded onto it, it scans this information and builds a list of the songs in its memory.

Answer: shuffle

To play the songs in shuffle mode, the MP3 player must first take the list of songs and rearrange it in a random order. It will then play the "shuffled" list.

Answer: Reading the song with a laser

MP3 players don't need to use a laser to read their songs, since the songs are already stored in the players' memory. The MP3 is first uncompressed. Then, since our ears are analog, not digital, the signal is converted from digital to analog. Sometimes sound effects, such as stereo balance or SRS or bass boost, are applied to the converted signal. The signal is then amplified so that it is strong enough to drive the MP3 player's earbuds or headphones.

Answer: False

Microsoft and Apple have their own formats for audio compression, and most MP3 players are programmed to be able to play their formats as well as MP3. Some players can also play songs in other formats, such as OGG Vorbis.

Answer: No

Apple's first iPod was released in 2001, three years after the Korean company, SaeHan Information Systems, introduced their MPMan MP3 player. Compaq also released its PJB-100, the first MP3 player with a hard drive for memory storage, before the iPod was introduced. Apple's product was not the first MP3 player, though it has become the best known and best selling.

Answer: False

The tradeoff is space versus playback quality. Higher bitrates give lower compression, but are supposed to give better playback quality.