Which is Bigger - KB or MB?
Are you baffled, like me, about how much memory and storage space does your computer have? Are you are also confused between KB, MB, GB? Well, do not be confused anymore. In this article, we figure out, what is KB, MB, GB, as well as which is bigger KB or MB or GB?
Bit Size
A bit is defined as a variable, which can have only two possible values. Each bit denotes the binary value of either 1 or 0, which are interpreted as binary digits. The correspondence between these values of 0 and 1 and the physical states of the underlying storage or device is a matter of convention.
Byte
A unit of digital information in computing and telecommunication is called a byte. It is nothing, but an ordered collection of bits. Historically speaking, a byte was the number of bits, that were used to encode a single character of text in a computer. Hence, it is the basic addressable element in many computer architecture. The size of a byte is typically dependent on the hardware, but the modern standard is 8 bits, because it is a convenient power of 2. The number of bits are only different powers of 2. Like 8, 16, 32, 64, etc. A term called 'octet' was explicitly defined to stand for a sequence of 8 bits, to avoid the ambiguity associated with the term byte. A byte is the smallest unit of data, which can be processed on any family computer.
Which File Size is Bigger KB or MB?
We have seen what exactly are bits and bytes in computer memory. The next term, which we need to know is kilobyte, which is represented as KB. A kilobyte represented in binary is 1024 bytes and is represented as 210. It can also be used to represent the 1000 bytes or 103, which is the decimal interpretation. This may be a little confusing, but note that binary KB is slightly bigger than decimal KB, by 24 bytes to be more precise. As is the case with KB, MB also has two interpretation. When represented in the binary system it is 1,048,576 bytes or 220 bytes and it stands for megabyte. Whereas when the decimal system is used, then it stands for 1,000,000 bytes or 106 bytes. In the decimal system, MB stands for megabits.
People often have question regarding a KB being bigger or MB, because manufacturers sometimes provide information in decimal and sometimes in binary, which is very confusing for a common man. Now we will see the MB and KB size.
1 nibble = 4 bits
1 byte = 8 bits
1 KB (one Kilobyte) = 1024 bytes
1 MB (one Megabyte) = 1024 KB = 1,048,576 bytes
So now, with the introduction of the term kilobit and megabit, do you wonder where are they used. These terms are used in data transfer speed on the Internet or intranet. Now, will the same question come again. The mathematical representation of whether a MB is bigger or KB is bigger lies in the following table.
1 mbps = 1,000,000 bits per second
From the entire discussion on about KB and MB, it is clear that MB is bigger than KB, whether you use the decimal system or the binary system. Differentiation can be made in way both kilobits and kilobytes are written. Kilobits are often written as kbps and kilobytes are written either as Kbps or kBps.
