Microsoft today released a new Windows 10 Insider Preview Build for Insiders enrolled in the Fast Ring. The Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 17123 brought many new features for them to test over the weekend.

The Preview Build with version 17123 is available for Fast Ring Insiders and comes with many new features. Among the many features the top feature which the company has released is the availability of High Efficiency Image File Format (HEIFF) for the Photos app in Windows 10.

HEIFF works with modern codecs which improve the quality of the photos, compression and capabilities. The new codecs are more advanced and improve the quality of photos as compared to earlier formats like JPEG, GIF and PNG.

The new file format also supports encoding of image sequences, live images, video and HDR for greater contrast. The company has also made sure to give users the essential viewing support with the new High Efficiency Image File Format.

Currently Windows 10 users are not allowed to edit the HEIFF images in this build, but Microsoft says the edit option will be added in the upcoming builds for testing.

To try out the new file format, Microsoft says users would need to join the the company’s App Preview Program to test the new file format. The new format is available for Windows 10 users in the Photos app with version 2018.18022.13740.0 and above.

The above Photos app version is available for users or Insiders currently testing builds in Redstone 4. The RS4 Insiders will now have the support for viewing the primary image inside a HEIFF file.

Microsoft also confirms that you would need to install the media extensions for  HEIFF and HEVC from the Microsoft Store to be able to enable HEIFF viewing in Photos and metadata in File Explorer.

As reported the new High Efficiency Image File Format is only available for Redstone 4 Windows 10 Insiders enrolled in the Fast Ring and having the latest Photos app downloaded on their PCs by enrolling in the Preview App Program.

About The Author

Akshay Waghray

Akshay Waghray, who holds a degree in Computer Science, was a former technology news reporter for Windows Latest and his area of expertise include Windows. Articles contributed by Akshay have been referred by big publications such as TechRadar, XDA Developers, Future Inc, Purge, and others over the years. At Windows Latest, Akshay has written and edited thousands of articles using his decades long experience with Windows Server and Windows Update for Business.