gigabyte
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Related to gigabyte: megabyte
gig·a·byte
(gĭg′ə-bīt′, jĭg′-)n.
1. A unit of computer memory or data storage capacity equal to 1,024 megabytes (230 bytes).
2. One billion bytes.
Usage Note: The usual meaning of the prefix giga- is one billion, so one would expect the term gigabyte to refer to one billion bytes. However, in describing the capacity of an electronic device that stores digital data, it often has a special meaning, referring to the power of 2 closest to one billion, which is 230, or 1,073,741,824 bytes. This special meaning comes about because storage devices use binary numbers to keep track of storage locations, and so are often designed with a number of storage locations that is a power of 2. Nonetheless, for reasons of convenience manufacturers of hard drives generally use gigabyte when they mean a rounded off sum of 1 billion bytes. In other aspects of technology, such as data transmission, where powers of 2 are less relevant, a gigabyte normally means exactly 1 billion bytes. Other prefixes, such as mega- and tera-, show a similar pattern in use.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
gigabyte
(ˈɡɪɡəˌbaɪt; ˈɡaɪɡəˌbaɪt)n
(Computer Science) computing one thousand and twenty-four megabytes. See also giga-2
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
gig•a•byte
(ˈgɪg əˌbaɪt, ˈdʒɪg-)n. Computers.
1. 230 (1,073,741,824) bytes; 1024 megabytes.
2. 109, or one billion (1,000,000,000), bytes; 1000 megabytes. Abbr.: GB
[1970–75]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
gig·a·byte
(gĭg′ə-bīt′)1. A unit of computer memory or data storage capacity equal to 1,024 megabytes (230 bytes).
2. One billion bytes. See Note at megabyte.
The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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| Noun | 1. |  gigabyte - a unit of information equal to 1000 megabytes or 10^9 (1,000,000,000) bytescomputer memory unit - a unit for measuring computer memory |
| 2. | gigabyte - a unit of information equal to 1024 mebibytes or 2^30 (1,073,741,824) bytes computer memory unit - a unit for measuring computer memory |
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Translations
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
gigabyte
[ˈgɪgəbaɪt] n → gigaoctet m
modif
a ten-gigabyte hard drive → un disque dur de dix gigaoctets
a ten-gigabyte hard drive → un disque dur de dix gigaoctets
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
gigabyte
n (Comput) → Gigabyte nt
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995