You might be familiar with JPEG and PNG formats, but have you heard of the HEIC format? As Apple adopts HEIC for its devices, this new image format is rapidly gaining popularity. So, what exactly is an HEIC file, and why is it attracting so much attention? Let's take a closer look to understand what makes this efficient image format special and what benefits it offers.
Well, what does HEIC photo mean? As we mentioned above, HEIC is an iPhone's proprietary picture format. It stands for the High-Efficiency Image Format (HEIF), compressed with HEVC - the High-Efficiency Video Compression codec.
HEIC firstly greeted people's eyes in iPhone 7 running iOS 11 in 2017. Compared with the JPG format, the HEIC file format saves pictures in a smaller size while preserving high photo quality. That's the major cause why iPhone photos are in the HEIC format.
Apart from this, there is also much other evidence to show that HEIC is better than JPG. Let's continue reading.
Yes, HEIC is a better image storage format than JPG in many aspects:
Note: If you want to learn more about the difference between HEIC and JPEG, you can click here to read this article.
Considerate as Apple is, it allows you to switch between HEIC and common photo formats. If you need to stop your iPhone from taking HEIC photos, a few settings are enough!
Step 1. Open iPhone's Settings, navigate to the Camera tab and choose Formats.
Step 2. Tap the Most Compatible option to switch to the JPEG/H.264 format.
If you consider converting HEIC to JPG as a hassle, one easy way to save HEIC photos in JPG format is by sharing the HEIC photos via email. After adding the HEIC photos as the attachments, those photos will automatically be saved with a .jpeg extension.
Step 1. Head over to the Photos app on your iPhone.
Step 2. Click the wanted HEIC photos to transfer and tap the Select button.
Step 3. Choose Mail from the pop-up window and sign in with your email account and password.
Step 4. Complete the recipient and send the email.
It is a bit touchy to open HEIC photos on a Windows PC. However, if your computer runs Windows 10, it will be easy for you to open and view HEIC pictures.
Microsoft has launched a codec program named HEIF Image Extensions, enabling you to open any HEIC photos as simply as possible. However, this extension program only works for Windows 10. If your PC runs another OS, you can upgrade it to Windows 10 before trying the following steps.
How to open the HEIC file in Windows 10?
Step 1. Install HEIF Image Extensions and HEVC Video Extensions packages on your computer from the Microsoft Store. Both of the packages will charge you a bit.
Step 2. Double-click an HEIC file, and it will open in the Photos app.
If you have a Mac, you can open HEIC photos with the built-in Preview feature and convert HEIC to PNG, JPG, TIFF, or PDF format without trouble.
Here's how to open HEIC file on Mac with Preview:
Step 1. Sync HEIC pictures to your Mac and open a file with Preview.
Step 2. Click File on the Apple menu and select the Export option.
Step 3. Choose the output format like JPEG, PNG, PDF, or TIFF, and hit the Save button.
There is a zero-failure method to convert HEIC to JPG without losing quality- using Coolmuster HEIC Converter. With this professional tool, you can convert multiple HEIC images to JPEG or PNG simultaneously without compression. Moreover, you can also store the Exif data during conversion.
Key features of HEIC to JPG Converter:
* Batch convert HEIC photos to JPEG/JPG/PNG files without losing quality.
* Allow you to adjust the picture quality before conversion and keep the Exif data during conversion.
* Convert the first 10 HEIC files for free.
* Easy, fast, and no image quality loss.
* Time-saving and read-only.
How do I convert HEIC to JPEG in minutes?
01Install and launch the app on your computer. Tap the Add HEIC button to access your HEIC files on the home interface, or drag the HEIC files onto the window and click Drag and drop here to add pictures. When added, it will display the HEIC images on the interface.
02From the right panel, select the output format as JPG/JPEG, define the photo quality and the storage path on the computer. If necessary, tick off the Keep Exif Data option to save the Exif to your PC.
03Tap the Convert button. When the conversion process is over, you can click the Open folder button to view the converted JPEG photos.
Video Tutorial:
What is an HEIC file? I believe you have already had a complete understanding of it. By now, HEIC files compatibility issues still exist on other devices except for iOS devices. If you have great HEIC photos on iPhone and need to use them on other operating systems, you can make Coolmuster HEIC Converter your prior choice to convert the HEIC to a wider compatible JPEG format.
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