If you’re an iPhone user, you might have come across AAE files quite a lot of times. AAE files are predominantly seen in the images folder of an iPhone. Have you ever waited and wondered what those files are and their use-cases? If yes, then read this article to find answers. We will focus on giving you a clear picture of what an AAE file is, its uses, if it is safe to keep and how to view AAE files.

What are AAE Files?

AAE files are a collection or record of edits made to a picture from Apple’s native photo application. It can also transfer non-destructive edits from iOS to macOS. These files are created in the native photo’s application of iOS 8 and corresponding versions and macOS 10.10 and the proceeding versions. Whenever you edit an image from the native photo application of your iPhone, the edits you made to the image will be stored in a separate XML file. This means that there will be separate copies of the original unedited version and the edited version of the image. Now, how is this useful? AAE files are of great use when a user reverts the changes and gets the original image back after making a series of changes to the original image. These files get stored in the same folder as the original name.

How to View AAE Files?

The default application or software that can open AAE files on windows are Apple photos, MacOS photo app, Apple iCloud. Since it is an XML-based file, any text editor like Microsoft Notepad or Apple TextEdit can open these files.

How to Open AAE Files on Windows?

Though opening these files on Windows doesn’t serve any purpose, you can still open them on your PC. If you want to open an image with the changes applied, follow the steps below.

1. Double click the AAE file from the File Explorer on Windows.

2. You will see the file open if the reading software is rightly associated.

3. If it doesn’t open, locate the JPG/JPEG image relating to AAE and open it.

4. To open the JPEG image with the changes hoarded in the AAE file, you must find the corresponding IOS device and open it from there.

5. Also, you can download the HEIC or JPG files with the AAE changes from iCloud. You will see the changes automatically applied from iCloud.

An Alternate Way to Open AAE Files on Windows

If you’re still encountering problems with opening AAE files on Windows, the below steps will help you how to open aae files on Windows 10. Your OS needs to know which program you prefer to act. Most of the time, the OS will automatically detect and act with the suitable pre-installed program in the device. Let’s look at the steps to view these file extensions in Windows.

1. Initially, upload the files to your Dropbox.

2. Now, log in to your Dropbox account, and gather all the images in their original sizes.

3. Finally, mail yourself the images from Dropbox. Login to your mail from the Windows device and download the images. You will find the images with AAE changes in your Windows device.

4. You can open the JPG image with any photo application and the AAE files with any text editor.

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Key Take-Aways

You may wonder if you should keep or delete the AAE files as you don’t yet know the actual purpose of these files. These files are useless in Windows and other operating systems as there’s no default program yet in other operating systems to open the AAE files. Deleting them from other operating systems doesn’t cause any adverse effects. However, if you delete these files from your iOS device, you will lose the edits made to the image. Also, note that the AAE file has the same name as in the original file. If you rename the AAE file, the connection between the original and the modified version of the file will be lost. Therefore, to retain access to both the original and unedited version of an image in your Apple device, you must not rename the AAE file or the original file or change the location of either of the files. It is important for them to be in the same folder, with the same name.