HEIF and HEIC
HEIF (high efficiency image file format) is a file format for storing digital images and image sequences. Its companion file format, HEIC (high efficiency image coding), can encapsulate multiple copies of HEIF sequence data, and other non-photographic media. HEIF and HEIC files are created by the camera applications of modern Android and iPhone devices, and by professional grade digital cameras. The file format was developed by the Motion Picture Experts Group, and has been used commercially since 2015.
Advantages of HEIF
HEIF offers more efficient compression than the JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) file format. On average, HEIF can retain 100% additional quality and detail compared to a JPEG file of similar file size. In addition, HEIF can capture burst photography (where many photos are captured in rapid sequence) in a single file.
HEIC information
HEIC is a "container" format can package multiple HEIF image sequences with additional media such as audio recordings. Examples of applications which use the HEIC container format include the Live Video feature of iOS.
Extension and Internet media type
HEIF and HEIC files have the file extensions .heif and .heic. When specified in a program or web page, their Internet Media/content types are:
image/heif image/heic image/heif-sequence image/heic-sequence
Operating system support
The following operating systems support HEIF:
- Windows 10 version 1803 (April 2018 update) and above.
- macOS version 10.3 (High Sierra) and above.
- Android P and above.
- iOS version 11.0 and above.