2Dex Plain comparisons of image and design tools

SageThumbs 2K vs Icaros in 2026

Compare SageThumbs 2K and Icaros for Windows thumbnail previews, design files, pricing, setup and daily use.

By 2Dex ·

2Dex is published by the makers of SageThumbs 2K, RēDesign and VectorMagik, which are compared here alongside other tools.

SageThumbs 2K adds File Explorer thumbnails for 363 file types that Windows cannot render natively, including camera RAW, Photoshop PSD, HEIC/AVIF, and video. [1] Icaros can provide Windows Explorer thumbnails for essentially any video media format supported by FFmpeg. [2]

SageThumbs 2K adds Explorer thumbnails for 363 file types, including design, RAW and video. [1] For a designer who needs video thumbnails from FFmpeg-supported media formats, Icaros says it meets that need. [2]

OptionPriceWindows versionsThumbnail scope
Icarosnot publishedVista, Windows 7, Windows 8/8.1, Windows 10 and Windows 11 [2]Video formats supported by FFmpeg [2]
SageThumbs 2KFree for personal use; US$2.99 a month or US$49 once for commercial use [1][1]Windows 11 [1]363 file types [1]

The short answer

SageThumbs 2K adds File Explorer thumbnails for 363 file types that Windows cannot render natively, including camera RAW, Photoshop PSD, HEIC/AVIF, and video. [1] Icaros can provide Windows Explorer thumbnails for essentially any video media format supported by FFmpeg. [2]

SageThumbs 2K also pulls embedded previews from design and CAD files such as Photoshop, Affinity, AutoCAD DWG, and CorelDRAW. [1] Icaros says it can provide thumbnails for video formats supported by FFmpeg. [2]

What Icaros is built for

Icaros can provide Windows Explorer thumbnails for essentially any video media format supported by FFmpeg. [2]

Icaros can register filetypes supported by FFmpeg along with a number of other filetypes it supports natively. [2]

Icaros also provides Windows Explorer properties, which are the details Explorer shows about a file, for many popular media filetypes. [2] Thumbnailing and properties can be activated or deactivated. [2]

What SageThumbs 2K is built for

SageThumbs 2K is made by the team that publishes this site. It adds File Explorer thumbnails for 363 file types that Windows cannot render natively, including camera RAW, Photoshop PSD, HEIC/AVIF, and video. [1]

It pulls an embedded preview directly out of design and CAD files such as Photoshop, Affinity, AutoCAD DWG, and CorelDRAW with no rendering needed. [1] Images carrying an embedded ICC profile or wide-gamut tag such as Display P3 or Adobe RGB are converted into sRGB before display. [1]

From the right-click menu, it can convert images, resize them, rotate or flip them losslessly, and combine images into a PDF or CBZ. [1] Multi-file jobs such as resize, rotate, strip and combine-to-PDF are spread across every CPU core. [1]

Pricing and fees

Icaros has no published price in the facts used for this page.

SageThumbs 2K is free for personal, noncommercial use under the PolyForm Noncommercial License 1.0.0. [1] Commercial use needs a per-installation licence: US$2.99 a month, or US$49 once for a perpetual licence with 12 months of updates. [1]

Business installs get a 7-day evaluation with every feature, after which thumbnails and previews stop until a licence key is entered. [1]

Getting started and everyday use

SageThumbs 2K runs on Windows 11, with separate installers for the two kinds of Windows computer processors. [1] You can use a portable zip that needs no admin rights. [1]

Pressing the Space bar opens a quick preview, and this is on by default unless another Space-bar previewer is installed. [1] You can tick or untick right-click menu items, drag rows to reorder them and drag divider rows to regroup the menu. [1]

Icaros lets users activate or deactivate thumbnailing and properties. [2] Icaros cache settings include options for a maximum cache size, remaining drive space limits, and cache location changes. [2][2][2]

A command-line tool covers thumbnails, conversions and batch jobs, and can also connect to AI assistant apps [1].

Things to check before you choose

Which file types fill your folders? Check each tool's published format information against your files.

Will the tool be used for paid work? Check the licence terms before installing.

Do you need right-click image actions, batch jobs, or design-file previews?

Do you need cache controls or media properties?

How to choose

For thumbnails of video formats supported by FFmpeg, Icaros says it meets that need. [2]

For thumbnails of RAW, PSD, HEIC/AVIF and video in one tool, SageThumbs 2K says it does this. [1] For previews of Photoshop, Affinity, DWG and CorelDRAW files, SageThumbs 2K says it pulls embedded previews from these files. [1]

For resizing, converting or combining images from the right-click menu, SageThumbs 2K says it does this. [1]

For files stored in OneDrive and Synology Drive folders, SageThumbs 2K says thumbnails work there and online-only files are not downloaded just to draw a thumbnail. [1]

Frequently asked questions

Is Icaros free?

The Icaros facts used on this page give no price, so its price is not published here. SageThumbs 2K is free for personal, noncommercial use under the PolyForm Noncommercial License 1.0.0. [1] Read the licence terms on Icaros' own page before using it for paid work.

Does SageThumbs 2K cost money for work use?

Commercial use needs a per-installation licence: US$2.99 a month, or US$49 once for a perpetual licence with 12 months of updates. [1] Business installs get a 7-day evaluation with every feature, after which thumbnails and previews stop until a licence key is entered. [1]

Which Windows versions are supported by each tool?

SageThumbs 2K runs on Windows 11, with separate installers for the two kinds of Windows computer processors. [1] For Icaros, check its own page for the Windows versions it supports. Check the requirements that match the computer being used.

Can SageThumbs 2K show PSD and RAW thumbnails?

SageThumbs 2K adds File Explorer thumbnails for 363 file types that Windows cannot render natively, including camera RAW, Photoshop PSD, HEIC/AVIF, and video. [1] It also pulls embedded previews from files such as Photoshop, Affinity, AutoCAD DWG and CorelDRAW. [1]

Does Icaros make video thumbnails in File Explorer?

Icaros can provide Windows Explorer thumbnails for essentially any video media format supported by FFmpeg. [2] Check the file formats needed for the workflow before choosing a thumbnail tool.

It is free for personal, noncommercial use under the PolyForm Noncommercial License 1.0.0. [1]

Try SageThumbs 2K

Sources

  1. SageThumbs 2K's own description of itself (the product of this site's publisher)
  2. Icaros, github.com/Xanashi/Icaros, read 2026-10-07

Related comparisons