When is ICO better than PS?
ICO images are less detailed and support transparency and animations, while PS images are very detailed and uncompressed and need to support transparency and animations.
The ICO file type can be used to create visually appealing application icons, website favicons, and desktop shortcuts. The advantages of the ICO format include the ability to integrate multiple images with varying color depths and file sizes, resulting in visible favicons or icons.
The advantages of ICO files include highly scalable while ensuring resolution levels, easily edited, supports animation and transparency.
When is PS better than ICO?
PS images are smaller, high-quality, and compatible with most operating systems, while ICO images are larger, support few color profiles, and are not fully compatible with non-Windows operating systems such as Mobile platforms (Android and iOS), Linux, and MacOS.
The PS file type is ideal for vector illustration in comic art, icons, company logo creation, commercial offset printing, and desktop printing. The benefits of the PS format include high resolution, high quality, and device independence.
PS versus ICO Comparison Table
| Element | PS | ICO |
| Transparency | Does not support transparency | Supports transparency. |
| File Size | Larger files than ICO files. | Smaller files compared PS files. |
| Image Quality | High-quality images. | High-quality images. |
| Performance | Load faster on websites than ICO files. | Loads slower on websites than PS files. |
| Structure | Vector-based with file header, mask, color mode data, layer data, and image information. | Vector-based with an Icon directory, image mask, XOR bitmap, block, and the AND bitmap. |
| Animation | Does not support animations. | Supports animations. |
| Storage | Needs more storage space than ICO. | Needs less storage space than PS. |
| Compression | Uncompressed files. | PNGOUT & TinyPNG lossless compression. |
| Browser Support | Limited web browser support compared to ICO. | Wider web browser support compared to PS. |
Differences and similarities between ICO and PS images
In the ICO versus PS comparison table above, both formats differ in compression technique, file size, structure, web browser support, storage demands, web performance, animation, and transparency support.
Transparency
ICO files support transparency, while PostScript (PS) files do not support transparency when printing vector graphics images. However, partially transparent or translucent images can be rendered as fully opaque and transparent pixels. Translucent PS images are called masks.
An ICO image supports transparency by allowing users to add semi-transparent areas like glass-like effects, anti-aliasing, and shadows to an image. It supports icons with different transparency levels, color depths, and varying dimensions. The format supports 8 bits of transparency, making it ideal for creating images with transparent backgrounds instead of PS.
File Size
PS files are often large and uncompressed, storing detailed page descriptions but do not have a strict 4GB size limit. ICO files are typically smaller, storing icons in multiple sizes with some basic compression. However, the compression in ICO file format could be more efficient, and their size can vary based on the number and resolution of the images they contain.
Image Quality
PS and ICO images are high-quality, although PS is more detailed and supports extra color profiles, giving the format an edge over ICO regarding image quality. PS files support 1-bit, 2-bit, 4-bit, and 8-bit pixels per channel alongside RGB, Grayscale, CIE, and CMYK color spaces.
Conversely, the ICO file format supports 24 bits of colors and 8 bits of transparency. The bit depth allows an ICO file to generate photorealistic or highly detailed icons. It also dictates the visual quality of each icon created. Both ICO and PS are scalable without losing resolution levels and image quality.
Performance
PS files are typically uncompressed and quite large, while ICO files can include losslessly compressed images, often resulting in much smaller file sizes. ICO files are generally more efficient for web use, particularly for icons, and are optimized for fast loading and transmission. PS files are not suitable for online images or web performance optimization. Therefore, for web development, especially for icons and favicons, the ICO format is preferred over PS files due to its smaller size and better compatibility with web technologies.
Structure
PS and ICO are vector-based file types with different structural components that are easy to compare. PS file extensions have headers, image data, color mode data, layer information, and a mask, among other file details. The header contains information about the PS file: the resolution level, version type, and number.
A PostScript file defines images, texts, and other features as mathematical curves and lines rather than a group of pixels. In contrast, an ICO file has an Icon directory (ICONDIR) with the ICONDIRENTRY structure for all images. An adjacent block with image bitmap data closely follows each image file.
An ICO has the AND bitmap-image mask and the XOR bitmap. The bitmapped data has either Windows BMP or PNG formats that ignore the BITMAPFILEHEADER structure. Multiple images are stored in a single file with varying sizes and color depths, easily permitting the scalability of each icon.
Animation
ICO files can be animated, while PS file extensions cannot. PS files are intended for still imagery or web-based content as they lack multimedia and interactive specifications that are ideal for animations or lively content compared to ICO files.
PS is unsuitable for creating interactive images and animations but preferred for screen-based content and printing. However, an ICO file supports animation via its icon features, which enable enhanced customization of websites or computer apps. ICO files also support multiple color depths and resolutions, allowing them to be animated.
Storage
PS files are info-rich, detailed, and typically uncompressed, often resulting in larger file sizes than ICO files, which store small icon images. While a single PS file can be several gigabytes due to its detailed content, ICO files are generally much smaller. ICO and PS formats differ in file sizes and storage demands, with PS files usually requiring more storage space. However, both formats can preserve image data for extended periods with proper handling and good storage conditions. ICO and PS files can be stored in various locations, including CDNs, Cloud storage, sub-directories, folders, programs, and through Base64 Encoding.
Compression
ICO format supports TinyPNG or PNGOUT lossless compression, whereas PS files are uncompressed or do not need any compression method, be it lossy or lossless. The lossless compressed ICO file is stored as PNG file, which is passed over to the DEFLATE that integrates Huffman coding with the LZ77 algorithm.
The final ICO is a high-quality PNG image. In contrast, PS users hardly need to design the plotter to use open compression methods, preserving all file details and resulting in higher image quality than ICO file. While PS files can be large, ICO compression is inefficient to significantly reduce its multiple file sizes.
Browser Support
ICO and PS file types are legacy image formats widely used in web development and graphic design. However, ICO files enjoy broader web browser support compared to PS files, although the PS format surpasses ICO in terms of operating systems’ compatibility and support.
Legacy and modern web browsers, such as Firefox, Opera, Chrome, Edge, and Brave, support ICO files. Old browsers like Internet Explorer, which hardly favor scaling icons, do not. Safari also supports only previews of ICO files. On the other hand, PS has limited web browser support.
Almost all web browsers do not support PS files directly. PS format users must install the PostScript Viewer or Compiler to their web browsers to open and view PS files in Chrome. The remaining top desktop and mobile browsers do not support PS files, giving the ICO format a competitive advantage over the PS format.
Converting ICO to PS or PS to ICO
Convertjack is a straightforward online tool used to convert ICO to PS. PS files are scalable, detailed, and supported by most operating systems, platforms, and software programs, ensuring high-quality printing results.
Convertjack is the most steadfast online PS to ICO converter. It creates high-quality ICO images, animations, and lively content with more memory space demands and transparent background support than the PS format.