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Image MIME Reference
TIFF-FX

TIFF for Facsimile eXtended

image/tiff-fx
VS

X Bitmap (Legacy MIME Alias)

image/x-xbm
XBM

A complete technical comparison of TIFF for Facsimile eXtended and X Bitmap (Legacy MIME Alias) — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.

Equal browser support

Feature Support

Feature TIFF-FX XBM
Transparency (Alpha) ✕ No Yes
Animation Support ✕ No ✕ No
Progressive Loading ✕ No ✕ No
HDR Support ✕ No ✕ No
EXIF Metadata ✕ No ✕ No
ICC Color Profile Yes ✕ No
TIFF for Facsimile eXtended
image/tiff-fx
Extension
.tiff.tif
Container TIFF 6.0 Tag Directory Structure
Compression MH / MR / MMR (CCITT Group 3 & 4) / JBIG / JPEG
Algorithm
CCITT Group 3/4JBIGJPEG
Color Depth 1-bit (Monochrome B&W), 8-bit (Grayscale/Color Indexed), 24-bit (RGB Color)
Developed by IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force)
Released 1998
Magic Bytes
49 49 2A 00 (Little-Endian) / 4D 4D 00 2A (Big-Endian)
Full TIFF-FX reference →
X Bitmap (Legacy MIME Alias)
image/x-xbm
Extension
.xbm
Container C Source Code Header (.h)
Compression Uncompressed (Source Code)
Algorithm
None
Color Depth 1-bit (Monochrome)
Developed by MIT / X Consortium (X Window System)
Released 1988
Magic Bytes
23 64 65 66 69 6e 65 (ASCII '#define')
Full XBM reference →

Browser Support Comparison

Browser TIFF-FX XBM
Chrome Chrome
✕ ✕
Firefox Firefox
✕ ✕
Safari Safari
✕ ✕
Edge Edge
✕ ✕
IE IE (Legacy)
✕
✓
TIFF-FX

TIFF-FX Strengths

  • Provides a universal, standardized format for transmitting multi-page documents over IP networks and email (Internet Fax)
  • Supports highly efficient telecom-centric compression algorithms (MMR, JBIG) that produce very small files for text documents
  • Maintains backwards compatibility with standard TIFF parsers
Limitations
  • Not supported natively by web browsers
  • Requires complex parsing of TIFF IFD tags to differentiate a true TIFF-FX file from a standard TIFF file
  • Usage is slowly declining as traditional faxing is replaced by secure PDF transmission and e-signature platforms
XBM

XBM Strengths

  • Can be compiled directly into C or C++ source code without needing an external file loader or binary asset manager
  • Human-readable structure allows developers to inspect, edit, or hand-craft tiny icons directly within a text editor
  • Extremely predictable and lightweight for 1-bit hardware displays and embedded systems
Limitations
  • Strictly limited to 1-bit monochrome (black and white) graphics with no gray or color support
  • Text-based C syntax creates massive file bloat compared to binary 1-bit formats like PBM
  • Completely deprecated in modern web browsers and desktop GUI frameworks

When to choose which format

TIFF-FX
Use TIFF-FX when…
  • Internet Fax (T.37)
  • Enterprise Fax Servers
  • Document Archiving
  • Telecommunications
XBM
Use XBM when…
  • X Window System (X11) Cursors and Icons
  • Embedded C/C++ Firmware UI Assets
  • Early 1990s Unix Web Graphics

More comparisons

TIFF-FX vs ACES → XBM vs ACES → TIFF-FX vs APNG → XBM vs APNG → TIFF-FX vs AVCI → XBM vs AVCI → TIFF-FX vs AVCS → XBM vs AVCS → TIFF-FX vs AVIF → XBM vs AVIF → All comparisons →
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