Pixelmator 2.4 for iOS brings full iOS 11 compatibility, including HEIF and Drag and Drop support

A useful addition for iPad users and part of the productivity additions introduced with iOS 11, the ability to use Drag and Drop makes it easier for users to incorporate other media into their Pixelmator compositions. Files can be moved individually or as a group into Pixelmator, including from Split View and the recent files pop-up window from apps located in the Dock.

The addition of High Efficiency Image File (HEIF) support means that Pixelmator is able to use photographs taken on an iPad or an iPhone using the format, instead of JPEG images. Apple introduced HEIF in iOS 11 to improve the compression of images, reducing the amount of an iPhone or iPad's storage that photographs consume without losing quality, though apps also have to be updated to support images using it.

The Cobalt update also incorporates a number of bug fixes and other improvements, with the developers highlighting four of the main changes in its release notes. One fix related to the app unexpectedly quitting when "zooming in after starting a selection," while another solves a problem where Pixelmator would occasionally stop responding after the user immediately tries reopening an image after closing it.

The development team also fixed an error where the composition would randomly disappear when layers are added or removed. Lastly, an issue where buttons in the Color and Format popovers would not respond to touches by the user has been cleared up.

Pixelmator for iOS is available in the iOS App Store for $4.99. It is compatible with the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch running iOS 9.1 or later, and takes up 138 megabytes of storage.

The update to the iOS version of Pixelmator echoes similar changes made to the macOS edition earlier in October. Version 3.7 "Mount Whitney" updated the image editor to be fully compatible with macOS High Sierra and added support for HEIF photographs, as well as a number of other integration and performance improvements.