Viewing HEIC, HEVC & HEIF Files On Windows

PaulDurham wrote:

What is Apple's recommended method of natively handling these files on Windows without incurring cost or being cumbersome?

You’d want to ask Apple that.

Locally… Update the target platform for support, or convert the files to compatible formats for the target platform, same as any other similar case of cross-platform file compatibility.

When porting files around platforms, if the particular target platform supports only {JPEG, PNG, BMP, crayons, whatever}, you’ll have to convert the files into the appropriate {JPEG, PNG, BMP, crayon} format, either at export or at import. (I’m familiar with one platform where support for crayons would be a step up, too.)

At export, Apple devices will export JPEG when requested, so you can use iPhone or iPad without getting HEIF / HEIC / HEVC / H.265 in the mix. And Apple tools can convert existing files to JPEG or such.

To add support, Microsoft purportedly have some free plug-ins, though the reviews there seem spotty. Here is a write-up on acquiring HEIF / HEIC / H.265 (free) from Microsoft: https://www.makeuseof.com/windows-11-hevc-heic-codecs/

Also check with Microsoft, and request better-integrated support.

PaulDurham wrote:

Apple must have though through this and have an answer. :-)

You continue to re-state a benefit of selecting and using Apple platforms as a problem for Apple to solve for Microsoft and other platforms. I doubt Apple will spend much (any?) effort updating Windows for HEIF support and related image and video codecs.

Apple tends to adopt newer features and newer hardware and retire older features earlier (q.v. USB-A, and the consternation around its retirement on Apple hardware), while Microsoft tends to be slower to adopt and slower to retire (q.v. the COM serial ports were common until fairly recently).

Some folks want to run older hardware and keep older apps, and Microsoft is better there.

Here? Apple would prefer folks currently using Windows acquire and install macOS on an a Mac M1 or M2, and install and boot Microsoft Windows Arm in the Parallels hypervisor for those apps not migrated from Windows to macOS, not yet replaced, or not yet retired.

Or you can continue with Microsoft Windows of course, and can use the provided JPEG and older file formats, and can also encourage Microsoft to add support for HEIF and related into Windows 11:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/send-feedback-to-microsoft-with-the-feedback-hub-app-f59187f8-8739-22d6-ba93-f66612949332