Hey everyone! Looks like Apple never stops introducing new stuff and removing outdated technologies. Remember CD drive, then 3.5mm audio jack, then USB-A… but that’s not all. Apple is also pushing forward new software trends – like “64bit only” apps, new programming languages like SWIFT and also fairly new file formats like HEIC or HEVC. In this post I’ll show you how to convert HEIC to JPG on MAC, PC and iPhone.
What is HEIC and why we need it?
How to switch from HEIC to JPEG on iPhone?
Convert HEIC to JPEG online
Converting HEIC to JPEG on PC or MAC
How to open HEIC on Windows?
Conclusion
Today we’ll talk about HEIF file formats. Should you use it over JPG and is it any better?
What is HEIC and why we need it?
Support for two new formats HEIF and HEVC (one for photo and one for video) first appeared in iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra.
HEIF – High Efficiency Image File format
HEVC – High Efficiency Video Coding (you probably know it already as H.265)
So what is HEIC then? It’s a file container, that uses HEIF compression and can include one or series of pictures, taken by iOS (and not only) devices.
Main advantage of these file formats is much better compression than JPEG and H.264. That means your media will take less storage on your devices, while keeping the same image quality.
So should you use HEIC over JPG? It all depends on what you’re doing with your photos. If you experience problems with this file format on PC or another device, then probably you’d better stick to old and friendly JPEG. But if you use photos inside of Apple ecosystem, you will not even know that you use HEIC.
At the end of the day, you can always convert HEIC to JPG on MAC or PC using a free app… In more details about that below.
As you can see from picture comparison, while the quality is the same, the file size is quite different (2MB vs. 3.1MB)
How to switch from HEIC to JPEG on iPhone?
If you’re an old school guy like me, you’d probably don’t care much about all the new formats and codecs… since the old ones still work OK. ;o)
Thank you Apple, this time you gave us a choice of which photo format to use. To turn off HEIC on iPhone, follow these steps:
Keep in mind, that from now your iPhone will be using JPEG for photos and H.264 for videos. Your media files will take more storage space, and you WILL NOT be able to shoot video in 4K/60, 1080p/240 and HDR mode.
There is one more thing… when you transfer photos from iPhone to MAC or PC, your iPhone can automatically detect if HEIF is supported by your device. As a result the photo and video files will be transferred in original format or will be converted to JPEG and H.264 automatically during transfer.
The setting for this option is located here: Settings > Photos.
Convert HEIC to JPEG online
There are a lot of online HEIC to JPEG convertors, just search Google. The only problem with all of them is they are very slow… Just think for yourself, first need to upload a photo, second – download JPG version, and then do the same with the rest of photos.
I would suggest to stick to a dedicated HEIC convertor app for few simple reasons: it’s fast, you can add multiple photos for conversion in just one click, doesn’t require internet, and it’s safe, since you don’t upload your private photos on random websites.
Convert HEIC to JPG on PC or MAC
To convert HEIC to JPEG I personally use iMazing HEIC Converter for it’s simplicity and price tag – it’s FREE.
I’m NOT in any sponsorship with DigiDNA (Swiss software developer company), but I can definitely recommend their products. Just try an iMazing HEIC Converter (DOWNLOAD page) which is 100% free, and you will see everything yourself.
Using the iMazing Converter is amazingly easy. All you have to do is to drag and drop files or folders to converter window. Then pick format you want to convert to (JPG or PNG) and set the quality level. Click Convert and specify folder for new files. Done!
This HEIC converter is a no-brainer… it’s very simple, does the job well, can convert HEIC files in bulk and works on MAC and PC.
How to open HEIC on Windows?
Ok, now we’ll talk about Windows PC. There is no default support of HEIF and HEVC file formats, but you can fix this situation by installing the Microsoft HEIF Image Extensions and HEVC Video Extensions packages from the Microsoft Store (DOWNLOAD page).
Unfortunately this package is available only for Windows 10. So if you’re still on older versions of Windows, the only solution is to convert HEIC to JPG with a dedicated converter… which we described earlier.
Conclusion
Like it or not, but the progress is constantly bringing us to the future. I try not to stay behind… but clearly understand, that my 10 year old son is already few steps ahead in some areas.
We need all these new file formats, wireless chargers, fold-able screens, etc. The sooner we accept it, the easier the life will be.