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Image MIME Reference
AVIF

AV1 Image File Format

image/avif
VS

Sony SRF Raw Image

image/x-sony-srf
Sony-SRF

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

AVIF wins on browser support

Feature Support

Feature AVIF Sony-SRF
Transparency (Alpha) Yes ✕ No
Animation Support Yes ✕ No
Progressive Loading ✕ No ✕ No
HDR Support Yes Yes
EXIF Metadata Yes Yes
ICC Color Profile Yes Yes
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 →
Sony SRF Raw Image
image/x-sony-srf
Extension
.srf
Container TIFF-based (Proprietary)
Compression Uncompressed
Algorithm
None
Color Depth 12-bit (Per Channel)
Developed by Sony Corporation
Released 2003
Magic Bytes
49 49 2A 00
Full Sony-SRF reference →

Browser Support Comparison

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

Sony-SRF Strengths

  • Retains perfectly raw, unprocessed sensor data from legacy early-2000s cameras, allowing modern raw processors to extract much better dynamic range and color than the camera's original internal JPEG engine could
  • Utilizes a standard TIFF container structure, ensuring broad compatibility with community-maintained open-source decoding libraries like LibRaw
Limitations
  • Completely obsolete format that has long been abandoned in favor of ARW
  • MIME detection via magic bytes is unreliable due to TIFF header spoofing, requiring deeper EXIF inspection for accurate routing
  • Cannot be natively viewed in web browsers or standard operating system image viewers without specialized decoders

When to choose which format

AVIF
Use AVIF when…
  • Next-Gen Websites
  • HDR Photography
  • High-Quality Web Images
Sony-SRF
Use Sony-SRF when…
  • Legacy Sony Cyber-shot Photography
  • Non-destructive Image Post-Processing
  • Early 2000s Raw Imaging Archival

More comparisons

AVIF vs ACES → Sony-SRF vs ACES → AVIF vs APNG → Sony-SRF vs APNG → AVIF vs AVCI → Sony-SRF vs AVCI → AVIF vs AVCS → Sony-SRF vs AVCS → All comparisons →
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