Christine Bako
Analog Devices

The JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) 2000 standard, finalized in 2001, defines a new image-coding scheme using state-of-the-art compression techniques based on wavelet technology. Its architecture is useful for many diverse applications, including Internet image distribution, security systems, digital photography, and medical imaging.

A lot of confusion exists as to what JPEG 2000 is and how it compares with other compression standards such as MPEG (Moving-Picture Experts Group) -2, MPEG-4, and the earlier JPEG. With brief comparisons to other compression standards, this article is primarily intended to highlight some of the often misunderstood and rarely mentioned potential-become-actual benefits of JPEG 2000.