WMA as opposed to MP3 formats. Really, this depends on the individual a lot believe it or not. Not too long ago I was trying to figure out the difference myself and I just couldn't come up with any clear answers. I mean really, the format is the difference, but what does that mean exactly?

WMA stands for Windows Media Audio. So no, you can't escape Mr. Gates no matter how you try. WMA is Microsoft's cornerstone for audio production and distribution. Most WMAs can be found on internet sites and the like. They are generally larger files than MP3s and are considered by Microsoft to have a higher quality than any other format. The main boast of WMA is simply that with the bitrate, amount of bits per nano-second, that WMAs offer the audio accuracy should be more dead on than with MP3 files.

MP3 or MPEG3 stands for Moving Picture Experts Group-Layer 3, so yeah, MP3 works much better for marketing purposes. The idea behind MP3s was to make the files themselves smaller than WMAs. They do this by eliminating the audio range that has been deemed inaudible by the human ear. This greatly reduces the space needed for the audio file and enables more music or audio files to be stored. Currently MP3 files are used mostly in MP3 players for purchased and pirated- amen- backed-up music files.

The difference in quality between WMAs and MP3s is miniscule, even at the same bitrate, but still it can be noticeable by some. Of course a bad audio track will sound bad in both, but be more noticeable in MP3 format. WMAs win for that sort of versatility.

MP3s are smaller files and have slowly become the standard over time, so that is something that definitely works in the MP3's advantage. WMAs are still mostly used on computers, where bitrate and to an extent, size is not as much of an issue as a personal player. So on a player it's advantage MP3 for storage capacity saved. On computer it's WMA for versatility and performance.

As to whether your MP3 player will play a WMA, the answer is "most likely yes." There's no reason why most will not. The thing to consider is if you want a lot of WMAs and MP3s on the same device, it won't hurt anything, but things can get kind of weird. It's a personal choice really. Hard drive space has increased a lot since the first generation of MP3 players were marketed, so space isn't an issue anymore, but still, sticking to one format is a good idea.

If you have some WMAs and want to do a WMA to MP3 conversion, then feel free. There are all kinds of software packages that will enable you to do that. And you can even convert MP3s to WMAs, but I don't know why you'd want to. Just remember, like everything else in life, when you make a copy of a copy, it's never as good as the previous copy.

Taking a look at WMAs versus MP3 formats, I'd say go with the MP3 if you're just an everyday person. There's no point in using the added room that WMAs have built into them unless you're a musician or otherwise wish to alter the original format. So it looks like MP3 are going to be the standard for music players for a long time.