file io - Java RandomAccessFile vs. DataInputStream for byte operations

Question

I need to read bytes from a file.
Is there a difference (e.g. efficiency, memory, runtime, complexity and inelegance of code) between using RandomAccessFile and using DataInputStream?

The only method I use is readByte().

Similarly for the other direction, is there a difference between RandomAccessFile and DataOutputStream if all that is needed is writeByte()?
(The fact that RandomAccessFile is bidirectional doesn't count, the reading and writing are not connected and cannot share it).

Is there any other object that would better suit that kind of reading and writing?

Answer 1

If you are only doing sequential access, by themselves they are essentially equivalent; however a DataInputStream around a BufferedInputStream around a FileInputStream will be considerably more efficient than a RandomAccessFile.