What is 3gp Format?

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27 December 2018 Jennifer Thatcher Technology Manager of Test Dept.

Summary
In the past, 3gp videos has been widely adopted in mobile phones. However, parts of you may not so clear about it. This article will focus on introducing what 3gp format are and how to play it.

Part 1: What is 3gp format?

Being a simplified MPEG-4 Part 14 (MP4) multi-media file format, 3gp format greatly decrease the requirement on device storage and bandwidth to accommodate lower end smart phones. 3gp format was so popular in 3G age. However, the use of 3gp format has been greatly decreased with more and more advanced mobile phones are output.

1. 3gp format has 2 different standard. They are:

3GPP Designed for GSM-Based phones and may have the filename extension .3gp
3GPP2 Designed for CDMA-Based phones and may have the filename extension .3g2

Both formats are coding with MPEG-4 and H.263 while accept AAC or AMR standing when coding voice.

2. 2 different resolutions are available in 3gp format

3gp format with resolution of 320*240 can be played on most mobile phones which support 3gp format formats.
3gp format with resolution of 352*288 will has better quality and suitable for most mobile phones, mp4 player, PSP and iPod.

Part 2: Compatibility of 3gp Format

3gp is a standard video format for 3G network mobile phones. With the advantages of small file size and convenience transmission, it is suitable for portable devices. Also, we can play the 3gp files in computer or convert it to other video formats with professional video converter.

① How to Play 3gp Files in Computer

When we save 3gp files to PC with Windows, Mac OS X or GNU/Linux, we can play it with Windows media player, QuickTime in Mac OS X or VLC. Also, Media Player Classic, K-Multimedia Player, Totem, RealPlayer, MPlayer and GOM Player also support 3gp format.

However, the quality will be poor if we play 3gp files on PC because of the low frame rate.

② How to Play 3gp Files with Mobile Phone

3gp format can be played on many 3G network mobile phones and no need of any special applications. If your mobile phone can not play it, please try with some third-party app. iOS users can Play 3gp Files with Oplayer while Android users can use MX Player and other MP4 video players.

If the player can not open 3gp files, it is recommended to convert 3gp files into MP4 one.

Part 3: Convert 3gp format to MP4 for playing on Other Devices

If your computer or portable devices can not play the 3gp or 3g2 files, you can convert the 3gp format to any other video formats like MP4 with better compatibility.

Tips: Renee Video Editor Pro can convert video formats, edit videos as well as add effect. Besides, you can also cut, combine, crop videos. Functions like adding or removing watermark, subtitle are also available. Renee Video Editor will recode the videos to sync the audio with video when you output it.

Step 1: Launch Renee Video Editor Pro. And click “Video Toolbox”.

Step 2: Click “Add Files” and select the target 3gp format.

Step 3: Click “Output Settings” and select “MP4” in the Output format selection. Then please select the place you want to save the converted video.

Step 4: Click “Start” and wait for the conversion finish.

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