What is is a megabyte?

Answer 1

1 bit = a binary number; a 1 or a 0.

1 byte = 8 bits = the amount of computer memory stored in one ASCII character.

Here is a conversion chart to show you how they all work together (exact calculations are shown in the parenthesis)

• 8 bits = 1 B
• 1,000 B = 1 KB
• 1,000,000 B = 1,000 KB = 1 MB
• 1,000,000,000 B = MB 1 G
• 1,000,000,000,000 B 1,000,000,000 KB 1,000,000 MB 1,000 G 1 Terabyte

Computer memory (RAM), storage space, and application and document sizes are measured in KBs or MBs.

Real Life Examples:

10 B = A ten-letter word, like "calculator"

5 KB = Average Page of Text with 5000 characters/bytes

10 KB = An encyclopedic page

100 KB = Low-Resolution Picture

1 MB = 1 Small Novel or 3.5 inch floppy disk

100 MB = A Two-Volume encyclopaedic book OR 1 Meter of shelved books.

A megabyte is 1,000,000 bytes

Answer 2

A megabyte is a unit of computer memory with a capacity of exactly 1,024 kilobytes or 1,048,576 bytes.

Memory capacity is always measured in powers of 2, such that 1 kilobyte is 2^10 bytes, 1 megabyte is 2^20 bytes, 1 gigabyte is 2^30 bytes and 1 terabyte is 2^40 bytes.

Note that hard-drive manufacturers use a 1,000 byte kilobyte because it makes their hard drives seem far larger than they actually are. For instance, a 3 terabyte hard drive only has 2.72 terabytes of actual storage capacity.