JPEG Stereo Image
image/x-jps
Released 1990
· by Stereoscopic Community (Unofficial Standard)
The image/x-jps MIME type represents the JPEG Stereo (JPS) image format, a stereoscopic 3D graphic format based entirely on the standard JPEG specification. A JPS file simply contains two separate images—one for the left eye and one for the right eye—stitched together side-by-side within a single standard JPEG container. When opened in a standard 2D image viewer or web browser, it appears as a wide, side-by-side double image. When opened in specialized stereoscopic software, VR headsets, or 3D displays, the software splits the image in half and presents the left and right halves to the corresponding eyes to create a 3D depth effect.
Technical Specifications
.jps
JPEG (Discrete Cosine Transform)
image/jpegimage/jps
Magic Bytes & HTTP Headers
ÿØÿ
Browser Support Matrix
| Browser | Status | Min Version |
|---|---|---|
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Supported | 1 |
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Supported | 1 |
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Supported | 1 |
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Supported | 12 |
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Supported | Legacy |
Advantages & Limitations
- 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
- 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- Superseded in consumer electronics by the MPO (Multi-Picture Object) format, which stacks separate full-resolution JPEGs rather than squishing them side-by-side
Developer Code Snippets
File Detection Steps
How to programmatically detect a image/x-jps
file by reading its raw bytes:
- 1 Because a JPS file is structurally identical to a standard JPEG, it begins with the exact same magic bytes (Hex: FF D8 FF).
- 2 File sniffers and MIME detectors will almost universally identify JPS files as 'image/jpeg'.
- 3 To specifically route JPS files for 3D processing in a web application, you must rely on the '.jps' file extension or specific stereoscopic EXIF metadata flags if written by the camera.
Software Support
Conversion Tools
Share & Embed
[](https://freewebptojpg.com/mime/image/jps)
<iframe src="https://freewebptojpg.com/mime/image/jps/embed" width="100%" height="280" style="border:1px solid #cbd5e1;border-radius:8px;" title="JPS Specs"></iframe>
JSON API
All data on this page is available as a free, open JSON API. Use it in your project, documentation, or tooling.
GET https://freewebptojpg.com/mime/image/jps.json
Open JSON
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a JPS file?
A JPS (JPEG Stereo) file is a 3D image format that stores a left-eye and right-eye view side-by-side inside a standard JPEG file. It is commonly used for stereoscopic 3D photography and VR image viewing.
How do I view a JPS file in 3D?
You can view JPS files in 3D using Virtual Reality (VR) headsets, 3D TVs, or specialized software like StereoPhoto Maker. Some people can also view them without equipment using the 'cross-eyed' or 'parallel' free-viewing techniques.
Are JPS files just renamed JPEGs?
Yes. Structurally, a JPS file is a 100% standard JPEG image. The .jps extension simply acts as a flag to tell 3D-aware software to automatically split the image horizontally and render it stereoscopically instead of as a flat 2D picture.