Implementation of HEIC as additional image format (de/encoding)

after a intensive testing and comparison of the “new” HEIC, which is pushed by Apple, I can see it as a great long-term successor for the old JPEG. Sure, one gets much smaller files at the same at same detail level of JPEGs but I think that the ability to export a file with 10-bit is much more interesting (SSD / HDD space is really cheap, but the developer saw i.a. the costs and e.g. energy use reduction on internet transfers - CO2, bandwidth, etc.). In the comparison in e.g. a slide show one can see the obvious difference of the enhanced number of possible shades. So, why should one present a “great” picture with a mediocre medium?

For the testing I used mainly GIMP and XNView MP (on Windows 10) that uses the latest open codecs to import and export HEIC files. I use also the free decoder add-ons for W10, which some tools require to display the HEICs.

The 100% quality settings usually produce larger HEIC than then original JPEG, where it’s hard to see great differences to loseless formats (sure, they are there). But slightly lower quality settings produce superior image files that are smaller and feature great reproduction of level of shades.

Maybe this is worth some thoughts? It might even be a better suggestion for RT?

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