AV1 Image File Format (AVIF) is anopen,royalty-free image file format specification for storing images or image sequences compressed withAV1 in theHEIF container format.[1][2] It competes withHEIC, which uses the same container format built uponISOBMFF, butHEVC for compression. Version 1.0.0 of the AVIF specification was finalized in February 2019. Version 1.1.0 was finalized in April 2022.
In a number of tests byNetflix in 2020, AVIF showed better compression efficiency thanJPEG as well as better detail preservation, fewer blocking artifacts and lesscolor bleeding around hard edges in composites of natural images, text, and graphics.[3]
According to the website caniuse.com, AVIF support is available in all the major web browsers (accounting for over 93% of all web browsers by use).[4]
Level 5.1 is chosen for the Baseline profile to ensure that no single coded image exceeds 8K resolution, as some decoders may not be able to handle larger images. More precisely, coded image items compliant to the AVIF Baseline profile may not have a total number of pixels greater than 8,912,896, a width greater than 8,192, or a height greater than 4,352. It is still possible to use the Baseline profile to create larger images using grid derivation.
AVIF Advanced Profile
Uses AV1 High Profile
AV1 level is 6.0 or lower
Coded image items compliant to the AVIF Advanced profile may not have a total number of pixels greater than 35,651,584, a width greater than 16,384, or a height greater than 8,704. It is still possible to use the Advanced profile to create larger images using grid derivation.
On 14 December 2018, Netflix published the first .avif sample images.[10] In November 2020,HDR sample images with PQ transfer function and BT.2020 color primaries were published.[5]
In August 2020,Google Chrome version 85 was released with full AVIF support.[11] Google Chrome 89 for Android adds AVIF support.[12]
In October 2021,Mozilla Firefox 93 was released with default AVIF support.[13]
WebKit added AVIF support on 5 March 2021. Safari for iOS 16 and macOS Ventura added support for AVIF; iOS 16 was released on 12 September 2022[14] and macOS Ventura on 24 October 2022.[15] Safari 16.4 retroactively added AVIF support for macOS Monterey and macOS Big Sur.[16]
Microsoft Edge added AVIF support in version 121 released in January 2024.[17]
Windows – Microsoft announced support with theWindows 10, version 1903 preview release, including support in File Explorer, Paint, and multiple APIs, together with sample images. SinceWindows 11, version 22H2, the AVIF Image Extension is built-in by default installation.[39]
Android – Android 12, released on 4 October 2021, added native support for AVIF.[40]
Linux – AVIF is widely supported inLinux distributions. With the release of libavif 0.8.0 in July 2020, which added aGdkPixbuf plugin, AVIF support is present in most GNOME/GTK applications.[41] TheKDE Frameworks added support for AVIF to the "KImageFormats" library in January 2021, enabling most KDE/Qt applications to support viewing and saving AVIF images.[42] Nomacs 3.16 adds support for AVIF viewing and conversion. Nomacs appimage is also for older Linux.
Apple platforms – iOS 16, iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura natively support AVIF. AVIF images can be directly viewed in the Finder, with QuickLook, in the iOS Files app, etc.
^Mavlankar, Aditya; De Cock, Jan; Concolato, Cyril; Swanson, Kyle; Moorthy, Anush; Aaron, Anne (13 February 2020)."AVIF for Next-Generation Image Coding".The Netflix Tech Blog.Archived from the original on 15 February 2020. Retrieved19 November 2021.
^"What's New | ACDSee Photo Studio".ACDSee Photo Studio Software | Photo Editing, Photo Management, Photo Editor, Digital Photography, Digital Asset Management, DAM. Retrieved5 September 2024.
