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Image MIME Reference
Alias-PIX

Alias PIX Image

image/x-alias-pix
VS

AV1 Image File Format

image/avif
AVIF

A complete technical comparison of Alias PIX Image and AV1 Image File Format — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.

AVIF wins on browser support

Feature Support

Feature Alias-PIX AVIF
Transparency (Alpha) ✕ No Yes
Animation Support ✕ No Yes
Progressive Loading ✕ No ✕ No
HDR Support ✕ No Yes
EXIF Metadata ✕ No Yes
ICC Color Profile ✕ No Yes
Alias PIX Image
image/x-alias-pix
Extension
.pix.als.alias.img
Container Alias PIX Header
Compression Run-Length Encoding (RLE)
Algorithm
RLE
Color Depth 24-bit (RGB), 8-bit (Matte/Grayscale variant)
Developed by Alias Research (Later Alias|Wavefront / Autodesk)
Released Early 1990s
Magic Bytes
No explicit magic bytes (Relies on 10-byte integer header)
Full Alias-PIX reference →
AV1 Image File Format
image/avif
Extension
.avif
Container HEIF / ISOBMFF
Compression AV1 Lossy / AV1 Lossless
Algorithm
AV1
Color Depth 8-bit, 10-bit, 12-bit
Developed by Alliance for Open Media (AOMedia)
Released 2019
Magic Bytes
XX XX XX XX 66 74 79 70 61 76 69 66
Full AVIF reference →

Browser Support Comparison

Browser Alias-PIX AVIF
Chrome Chrome
✕
✓ 85+
Firefox Firefox
✕
✓ 93+
Safari Safari
✕
✓ 16+
Edge Edge
✕
✓ 121+
IE IE (Legacy)
✕ ✕
Alias-PIX

Alias-PIX Strengths

  • The highly simplified structure made it incredibly fast to encode and decode on early 1990s SGI hardware
  • Lossless Run-Length Encoding (RLE) saved disk space without degrading the quality of final 3D renders
Limitations
  • Completely obsolete, having been replaced by more robust formats like TIFF, TGA, and EXR in modern 3D pipelines
  • The lack of a distinct magic byte signature makes reliable automated file detection almost impossible
  • Does not support integrated alpha channels, instead requiring cumbersome, separate 'Matte' files to denote transparency
AVIF

AVIF Strengths

  • Best-in-class compression — typically 20–50% smaller than WebP at equivalent quality
  • Native HDR and wide color gamut (BT.2020) support
  • Supports 8, 10, and 12-bit color depth
Limitations
  • Encoding is highly CPU-intensive — significantly slower than JPEG or WebP
  • Requires Edge 121+ (not supported in earlier Edge versions)
  • Limited support in native desktop image viewers

When to choose which format

Alias-PIX
Use Alias-PIX when…
  • Legacy Alias PowerAnimator Textures
  • 1990s SGI Workstation Render Outputs
  • Historical 3D Graphics Archival
AVIF
Use AVIF when…
  • Next-Gen Websites
  • HDR Photography
  • High-Quality Web Images

More comparisons

Alias-PIX vs ACES → AVIF vs ACES → Alias-PIX vs APNG → AVIF vs APNG → Alias-PIX vs AVCI → AVIF vs AVCI → Alias-PIX vs AVCS → AVIF vs AVCS → All comparisons →
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