APNG vs BMP: Which Image file format is better?

APNG vs BMP; both of these formats are types of image files. Images are used in our commonly handles gadgets like computers and smartphones etc. Usually, users do not pay attention to the specific types of file extensions they use. These extensions are considerable in saving and opening files on different devices if you know the basic info about them.

Both of these formats APNG and BMP can be converted into other formats which are more popular according to a specific use. There are many converter software that provides this facility for the conversion of these files if you are looking to convert these formats.

Although these are just image file formats, they also have some acute differences that make both these unique. So which of these will be more suitable for you? This blog will guide you about both formats by telling you all about the formats, their pros, and cons to make it easy for you to figure out which one suits your requirements best.

What is an APNG format?

APNG stands for Animated Portable Network Graphics and this file extension is widely used as a raster graphic format. A sequence of animation composed of multiple frames is represented in this specific file format.

Visualization of these files is similar to GIF files but these have some specific differences from all other files. Storage of these files is usually considered as binary files and these comprise some extended specifications of PNG (Portable Network Graphics).

Pros

A major advantage of using this specific file extension is that it provides alpha transparency, 24- bit and True Color. These support 24-bit images and are made compatible with the older image formats. These can be compressed without losing the quality and features of the original file.

Cons

Although these files are executable using many browsers but are disapproved by many developers of different image formats like PNG and MNG. As this extension is an unofficial format of PNG files, it has backward compatibility. As an extension that does not provide its older version to negotiate for PNG, it does not provide any alert to the user for additional frames after the initial frame.

What is a BMP format?

BMP files are used for the storage of digital bitmap images. These images comprised in this format are known as device-independent. These consist of a color palette which is specified RGB intensity values of all the colors. Pixels of the bitmap are restored as packed bits rows where their size is rounded up to the multiple of 4 bytes.

Pros

Various color depths and profiles, data compression, and alpha channels are supported by this file format.  The compression and uncompression of these files are lossless as compared to other file formats. These can be exchanged from one to another device without losing quality.

Cons

This type of format is not suitable for prepress production due to its RGB limitation. Other file formats are more suitable as compared to it. There is lesser flexibility in this format as compared to TIFF and JPG so you need to consider again in case of prepress production.

Conclusion

Although both of these are image file formats, BMP file format is widely used as compared to APNG as bitmap images can be used, exchanged, compressed, and uncompressed without loss of quality. APNG has older compatibility but this advantage cannot be comprised over the features of BMP.