Gibibit

A gibibit is a unit of information equal to 2^30 bits. It is part of the binary prefix system developed to align data quantities with powers of two, using the prefix gali/ gibi- to denote 2^30. In practice, the term is sometimes written as gibibit or Gibibit, with variations in abbreviation such as Gib or Gbit depending on context.

One gibibit equals 1,073,741,824 bits. In bytes, this is 134,217,728 bytes, which is 128 mebibytes (MiB). In relation to other binary units, 1 gibibit equals 1024 mebibits (Mibit), and 1 gibibyte (GiB) equals 8 gibibits.

Difference from decimal gigabit: a decimal gigabit (Gb) is 10^9 bits, whereas a gibibit is 2^30 bits. Therefore, 1 gibibit is approximately 1.0737 decimal gigabits. This distinction can cause confusion in data-rate specifications when binary and decimal prefixes are used interchangeably.

Usage and context: gibibits are primarily used in theoretical discussions or technical contexts where binary scaling is preferred. In common practice, network speeds are usually specified in decimal gigabits per second (Gbps) or with binary prefixes for storage in gibibytes (GiB) and mebibits, though usage of gibibits in everyday specifications is relatively rare compared to other units.

Standards and terminology: the binary prefixes gibi-, mebi-, gibi- (and their corresponding units) are standardized in ISO/IEC 80000 and IEC 60027-2. Despite standardization, real-world adoption of the gibibit for data rates remains infrequent, with preference often given to either Gb or Gbit/s for clarity.