Image MIME Reference
JPEG-XR-Sequence
JPEG XR Image Sequence (HEIF Container)
image/jxrs
VS
JPEG Stereo Image
image/x-jps
JPS
A complete technical comparison of JPEG XR Image Sequence (HEIF Container) and JPEG Stereo Image — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.
JPS wins on browser support
Feature Support
| Feature | JPEG-XR-Sequence | JPS |
|---|---|---|
| Transparency (Alpha) | Yes | ✕ No |
| Animation Support | Yes | ✕ No |
| Progressive Loading | Yes | Yes |
| HDR Support | Yes | ✕ No |
| EXIF Metadata | Yes | Yes |
| ICC Color Profile | Yes | Yes |
JPEG XR Image Sequence (HEIF Container)
image/jxrs
Extension
.jxrs
Container
HEIF / ISOBMFF (ISO/IEC 23008-12 / Annex F of ITU-T T.832)
Compression
Lossy / Lossless
Algorithm
JPEG XR (Lapped Biorthogonal Transform)
Color Depth
8-bit, 16-bit, 32-bit (Float)
Developed by
ISO/IEC JTC 1 / ITU-T
Released
2019
Magic Bytes
XX XX XX XX 66 74 79 70 6A 78 72 53
JPEG Stereo Image
image/x-jps
Extension
.jps
Container
JPEG (JFIF/Exif)
Compression
Lossy (JPEG/DCT)
Algorithm
JPEG (Discrete Cosine Transform)
Color Depth
8-bit (Grayscale), 24-bit (RGB)
Developed by
Stereoscopic Community (Unofficial Standard)
Released
1990
Magic Bytes
FF D8 FF
Browser Support Comparison
| Browser | JPEG-XR-Sequence | JPS |
|---|---|---|
Chrome
|
✕ |
✓ 1
|
Firefox
|
✕ |
✓ 1
|
Safari
|
✕ |
✓ 1
|
Edge
|
✕ |
✓ 12
|
IE (Legacy)
|
✕ |
✓
|
JPEG-XR-Sequence
JPEG-XR-Sequence Strengths
- Supports 32-bit floating point HDR color depths natively across an entire animation sequence
- Combines the advanced coding efficiencies of JPEG XR with the sequence timing and metadata framework of HEIF
- Shares frame data structures allowing for optimized storage of burst photography
Limitations
- Extremely rare format with essentially no mainstream software adoption
- Zero web browser support
- Overshadowed heavily by HEVC (HEIC sequences) and AV1 (AVIF sequences) which offer superior compression and broader hardware decoding support
JPS
JPS Strengths
- 100% backward compatible with every standard 2D image viewer and web browser (which simply display the two halves side-by-side)
- Inherits JPEG's excellent lossy compression, resulting in small file sizes ideal for web transmission
- Extremely easy to generate programmatically by simply stitching two JPEG images side-by-side onto a wider canvas
Limitations
- Lack of a dedicated metadata standard means viewing software has to guess whether the layout is 'cross-eyed' (right eye left, left eye right) or 'parallel' (left eye left, right eye right), occasionally causing inverted depth
- Suffers from JPEG compression artifacts, which can break the stereoscopic illusion if compression noise differs between the left and right eyes
- Superseded in consumer electronics by the MPO (Multi-Picture Object) format, which stacks separate full-resolution JPEGs rather than squishing them side-by-side
When to choose which format
JPEG-XR-Sequence
Use JPEG-XR-Sequence when…
- Experimental Animation Workflows
- HDR Burst Photography Archiving
- Specialized Medical & Scientific Imaging
JPS
Use JPS when…
- Stereoscopic 3D Photography
- Virtual Reality (VR) Image Galleries
- Cross-eye / Parallel Stereograms