Company
Date Published
Author
Harish Rajora
Word count
3814
Language
English
Hacker News points
None

Summary

AVIF, or AV Image Format, is a new, open, and royalty-free image compression format developed by the Alliance for Open Media, leveraging the AV1 codec. It offers high-quality compressed images without significantly sacrificing quality compared to existing formats like JPEG, PNG, and WebP, making it a promising successor to WebP. AVIF supports high dynamic range (HDR), various chroma subsampling options, and 8, 10, and 12-bit color depth, providing superior compression and image quality. Despite its advantages, AVIF faces challenges in market adoption due to limited browser support, though it is backed by major tech companies like Google and Netflix. As browsers like Chrome and Firefox begin to implement support for AVIF, it is expected to revolutionize image compression, although its full potential depends on broader compatibility and acceptance in digital platforms.