HEIC to JPG format

[Arborbridge]

My latest phone a Samsung A52s, stores photographs in HEIC format. I found this out only when a downloaded file on my PC could not be opened. I somehow worked around it, but inconviently as none of my old style programs recognise it.

According to various helplines, I am supposed to be able to make the camera convert to JPG on exporting but the facility has been taken off my version - something which happened with the latest Android, I think.

Anyhow, I just wondered how other people converted HEIC to JPG if necessary. "Converters" are to be found, but they either cost money or the reviews are far less than flattering so I haven't tried. There seems also to be an possibility that the "free" apps have the right to use your images.


Arb.

[ReformedCharacter]

My latest phone a Samsung A52s, stores photographs in HEIC format. I found this out only when a downloaded file on my PC could not be opened. I somehow worked around it, but inconviently as none of my old style programs recognise it.

According to various helplines, I am supposed to be able to make the camera convert to JPG on exporting but the facility has been taken off my version - something which happened with the latest Android, I think.

Anyhow, I just wondered how other people converted HEIC to JPG if necessary. "Converters" are to be found, but they either cost money or the reviews are far less than flattering so I haven't tried. There seems also to be an possibility that the "free" apps have the right to use your images.


Arb.

https://www.howtogeek.com/345504/how-to-open-heic-files-on-windows-or-convert-them-to-jpeg/

https://www.copytrans.net/copytransheic/

Might help.

RC

[monabri]

From the Galaxystore

https://galaxystore.samsung.com/detail/ ... ter.viewer

[Arborbridge]

I'll check out those links, thank you both.

In the meantime, for a single picture, I realise that instead of just clicking on "download" in my google pictures, I can easily right click and use "save as" jpg. Interestingly, I note that the phone automatically converts to jpg when it sends a picture in Whatsapp.


Arb.

[CliffEdge]

How stupid.

[Infrasonic]

Samsung does their own custom version of Android, it's not stock.

Have you looked in the advanced settings of the camera app to see if you can change anything there?
Or looked at third party camera apps that have more flexibility around setting the default file types?

On my Pixel 6a (Android 12) for instance I can toggle a switch to make RAW (DNG) or JPEG options appear in the menu screen when taking a photo with the stock app.

There's also a toggle switch for video to make it HEVC (H.265) - off on mine.

The more recent codecs do more compression to save on storage requirements as the quality of phone cameras increases.

[Arborbridge]

Samsung does their own custom version of Android, it's not stock.

Have you looked in the advanced settings of the camera app to see if you can change anything there?
Or looked at third party camera apps that have more flexibility around setting the default file types?

On my Pixel 6a (Android 12) for instance I can toggle a switch to make RAW (DNG) or JPEG options appear in the menu screen when taking a photo with the stock app.

There's also a toggle switch for video to make it HEVC (H.265) - off on mine.

The more recent codecs do more compression to save on storage requirements as the quality of phone cameras increases.

I've found out a little more....

In the camera app on the Samsung there is a toggle. It doesn't actually say "toggle from HEIC to JPG but that's what it does (it just mentions HEIC "on" gives enhanced compression) and when HEIC is not "on" by inspection I see it saves in JPG.

However, there is no way to save in HEIC on the phone and convert a batch of files to JPG on export. Interestingly, Whatsapp images are converted and sent to other phones in jpg so it must be able to do it "automatically".
Why they don't provide some user software I don't know.

For now, most of my requirements are to download single pix from the google drive (where they remain in HEIC) on to my PC, so I am content to use the "save as, jpg" routine as a solution.

Arb.

[Arborbridge]

From the Galaxystore

https://galaxystore.samsung.com/detail/ ... ter.viewer

Thanks - I believe I saw that one few days ago. I didn't try it because there are no reviews. Several of the other free apps had reviews which damned with faint praise, so it would have seemed irrational of me to reject those but to download one which had no reviews at all!

But thanks for your input.

Arb.