SIXEL File Converter
Online SIXEL File Converter - Instant Download!
Drag your file here to to upload.
Up to 250MB
How to Use SIXEL Converter
Step 1 – Upload SIXEL file
Drag your .SIXEL file or use the browse button.
Step 2 – Choose Format
Select the desired output format from the dropdown list.
Step 3 – Download File
Click "Convert" and download your converted file once ready.
About SIXEL (.SIXEL)
SIXEL is a graphics format that encodes bitmap images using ASCII characters, primarily designed for display on terminals. It allows images to be rendered directly in text-based environments, making it useful for early computer systems without graphical interfaces. The format was developed by Digital Equipment Corporation in the 1970s to enable richer visual output on their terminals. SIXEL graphics have experienced a resurgence with modern terminal emulators supporting them for retro and niche applications.
Technical Details
SIXEL data is composed of a sequence of ASCII characters that describe pixel color and position, allowing terminals to reconstruct the image line by line. Colors are defined using a palette, and pixels are grouped vertically in six-pixel blocks, hence the name. The format supports up to 256 colors, leveraging terminal color capabilities. Modern parsers and terminal emulators implement SIXEL decoding to display complex images without relying on graphical windowing systems.
Additional Information & Use Cases
Originally created for DEC's VT-series terminals, SIXEL enabled users to display images without dedicated graphics hardware. It encodes pixel data into sixel characters, each representing a vertical group of six pixels. This efficient approach allowed relatively high-resolution images on limited bandwidth connections. Today, SIXEL is often used in scenarios where lightweight image transmission is needed over text-based protocols.