A form of the MPEG compression method optimized for data rates in the 1 to 1.5 megabit/sec range, such as the transfer rate of CD-ROM drives and T-1 communication links.

MPEG-1 video, used in VideoCDs, is defined for non-interlaced, computer-type data streams. It is the form normally used with PCs. Typical MPEG-1 video compression ranges up to 100:1 for images comprised of 352 pixels (picture elements) by 240 lines at a refresh rate of up to 30 frames per second with 24-bit colour and CD-quality sound.

Video compression format developed by the Motion Picture Experts Group using perceptual coding and predictive technologies to eliminate data from an audio/video signal and thus encode it into a smaller size. MPEG-1 compression is used in some computer games, the old CD-I (CD-Interactive) format, video CDs and other areas where quality is not the primary issue. MPEG-1 is inferior to MPEG-2, which is used with DVD, DBS and HDTV (in a slightly modified higher-resolution format). PEG-1 compression uses multiple techniques to eliminate data that is deemed unnecessary. The first of these techniques eliminates small details in the picture. If the details are small enough, they are not easily perceived (or are not perceived at all). By eliminating them, the size of the signal can be reduced with a minimum amount of signal degradation. he second format used to compress MPEG-1 video is predicting or interpreting what areas of a moving image stay the same through multiple frames. For instance, if the door in a room is not opened and nothing moves in front of it, that image remains the same for multiple frames. The MPEG-1 compression technique looks first at a starting frame and then at an ending frame skipping several frames in between. Data that is the same from the starting to the ending frame (like the door) is only recorded and decoded once. That part of the starting frame is also used in the ending frame and all those in between. This is very similar to copying and pasting in a word processor; the same information is used multiple times so it does not need to be recreated each time. PEG-1 is able to compress video to a much smaller size; however, its compression alters the video to a fairly significant degree. It transfers up to 1.5 megabits of information per second. When MPEG-1 video is played back on a video display it cannot achieve picture quality greater than that of VHS tape (the lowest resolution video format).