Free webp to jpg
EN
Image MIME Reference
APNG

Animated Portable Network Graphics

image/vnd.mozilla.apng
VS

PCO B16 Image

image/vnd.pco.b16
PCO-B16

A complete technical comparison of Animated Portable Network Graphics and PCO B16 Image — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.

APNG wins on browser support

Feature Support

Feature APNG PCO-B16
Transparency (Alpha) Yes ✕ No
Animation Support Yes ✕ No
Progressive Loading Yes ✕ No
HDR Support ✕ No ✕ No
EXIF Metadata Yes ✕ No
ICC Color Profile Yes ✕ No
Animated Portable Network Graphics
image/vnd.mozilla.apng
Extension
.apng.png
Container PNG Chunk Stream
Compression Deflate (Lossless)
Algorithm
Deflate (zlib)
Color Depth 8-bit (Indexed), 24-bit (TrueColor), 32-bit (RGBA)
Developed by Mozilla Corporation (Stuart Parmenter & Vladimir Vukićević)
Released 2004
Magic Bytes
89 50 4E 47 0D 0A 1A 0A
Full APNG reference →
PCO B16 Image
image/vnd.pco.b16
Extension
.b16
Container PCO B16 Binary Container
Compression Uncompressed (Raw Sensor Data)
Algorithm
None
Color Depth 16-bit (Monochrome or Bayer Raw Color)
Developed by PCO AG (Excelitas PCO GmbH)
Released Early 2000s
Magic Bytes
50 43 4F 2D
Full PCO-B16 reference →

Browser Support Comparison

Browser APNG PCO-B16
Chrome Chrome
✓ 59
 ✕
Firefox Firefox
✓ 3
 ✕
Safari Safari
✓ 8
 ✕
Edge Edge
✓ 79
 ✕
IE IE (Legacy)
✕ ✕
APNG

APNG Strengths

  • Supports 8-bit alpha transparency, completely solving the ugly 'white halo' problem inherent to GIFs
  • Gracefully degrades; viewers that do not support APNG will render a perfectly valid, static PNG of the first frame
  • Provides lossless compression that retains absolute pixel-perfect quality for UI elements and line art
Limitations
  • Because it relies on lossless Deflate compression, file sizes for complex, video-like animations can be massive compared to lossy formats like WebP or AVIF
  • Was initially rejected by the official PNG group, delaying its adoption for nearly a decade
  • Lacks native hardware decoding acceleration, unlike video-based animated formats (like MP4 or WebM)
PCO-B16

PCO-B16 Strengths

  • Preserves exact, uncompressed 16-bit raw sensor data, which is critically important for accurate scientific measurements, fluorescence microscopy, and photometry
  • The simple, linear struct header is highly predictable and easy to parse in custom Python, MATLAB, or C++ scripts for researchers building bespoke pipelines
Limitations
  • Generates massive file sizes due to the complete lack of image compression [1.3.1]
  • Completely unsupported by standard operating systems, web browsers, and consumer image editing suites
  • Strictly tied to the hardware and software ecosystems of a single camera manufacturer

When to choose which format

APNG
Use APNG when…
  • High-Quality Web Animations
  • Stickers (Apple iMessage, LINE, Discord)
  • UI Loaders with Alpha Transparency
  • GIF Replacement
PCO-B16
Use PCO-B16 when…
  • Microscopy and Life Sciences
  • High-Speed Camera Recording
  • Machine Vision and Industrial Inspection
  • Scientific Photometry

More comparisons

APNG vs ACES → PCO-B16 vs ACES → APNG vs AVCI → PCO-B16 vs AVCI → APNG vs AVCS → PCO-B16 vs AVCS → APNG vs AVIF → PCO-B16 vs AVIF → All comparisons →
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