SRW Converter
SRW is Samsung's raw format, from the NX line that ended when Samsung left the camera business in 2015. That makes it an orphaned format: no vendor software is still being updated for it, which is precisely why moving those frames to something durable is worth doing while they still open.
SRW at a glance
| Full name | Samsung RAW |
|---|---|
| Extension | .srw |
| MIME type | image/x-samsung-srw |
| Compression | Lossless |
| Transparency | No |
| Animation | No |
| Colours | 12–14-bit per channel |
| Browser support | None — RAW editors only |
| Typical use | Samsung NX cameras, discontinued in 2015 |
| Introduced | 2010 |
Convert SRW to another format
SRW questions
How do I open an SRW file?
Lightroom, Camera Raw, darktable and RawTherapee still read SRW. Samsung's own Raw Converter has not been updated since the company left the camera business, so third-party software is now the practical route.
Is SRW still supported now that Samsung has left cameras?
Existing software support persists, but nothing new is being written for it and Samsung's tools are unmaintained. That is the argument for converting an SRW archive to TIFF or DNG now rather than relying on a reader still existing in ten years.
Which Samsung cameras produce SRW files?
The NX mirrorless line: the NX1 and NX500 at the top, and the earlier NX30, NX300 and NX3000. Samsung discontinued the range in 2015.
What should I convert an old SRW archive to?
TIFF if the images matter and storage does not, because it is lossless and universally readable. JPG at high quality if the archive is large and the photographs are finished work rather than material you expect to edit again.