CR2 to 3G2 Converter

Convert CR2 to 3G2 — and Why You Almost Certainly Want 3GP or JPG Instead

This page renders a Canon CR2 RAW photo into a .3g2 clip: a single still held on screen for a duration you set, with no motion and no sound. 3G2 is the CDMA-network twin of 3GP — a feature-phone container from the early 2000s — so converting a 20-megapixel RAW into it is a deliberate, extreme downgrade. The only reason to pick 3G2 over its near-identical sibling CR2 to 3GP is that a specific old CDMA device or piece of software names the .3g2 extension and nothing else. If you just want a usable picture, use CR2 to JPG; if you want a video that plays anywhere today, use CR2 to MP4.

3G2 vs 3GP: Which One Does Your Device Need?

3G2 and 3GP are near-twins — both are mobile containers built on the ISO base media file format (ISO/IEC 14496-12, the same family as MP4), and both carry the same H.263 / MPEG-4 / H.264 video. The split is purely the cellular network the target phone used.

The CDMA-specific audio codecs (EVRC, QCELP, SMV, VMR-WB) are 3G2's only real distinction from 3GP — and they are voice codecs, so they are moot here: a photo carries no audio and this conversion writes no audio track at all. For a silent still, a 3G2 and a 3GP file are practically the same thing in different wrappers.

When to Pick 3G2

• A genuinely old CDMA feature phone or basic handset (Verizon/Sprint-era) that accepts .3g2 for video or wallpaper-style clips and rejects .3gp.
• An MMS-era archive, kiosk, or legacy test rig that was built around the 3GPP2 container and names that exact extension (legacy-device testing — confirm your target before batch-converting).
• Note the realistic audience is offline devices and archives, not live phones: US carriers retired their CDMA networks, Verizon's on December 31, 2022, so you cannot send a 3G2 over a live CDMA connection anymore.

When to Pick 3GP (or Skip Both)

• If your old device is a GSM-era handset, or the receiving tool simply says "3GP", use CR2 to 3GP — it is the more widely recognized of the two extensions.
• If you want to see, print, or share the photo, neither mobile format helps — use CR2 to JPG for an openable image or CR2 to TIFF for a print master.
• If you want a video that plays on any current phone, TV, or browser, use CR2 to MP4 — it is smaller at the same quality and far more compatible than any 3G-era container.

How Much a 20 MP RAW Loses Going to 3G2

A modern Canon CR2 is roughly 5472x3648 pixels — about 20 megapixels of sensor data. The classic 3G target frame is QCIF, 176x144 pixels, the small size 3GPP and 3GPP2 adopted for 3G video over the constrained data channels of the era. Fitting one into the other discards nearly everything: the photo is downscaled by more than 30x on each axis to land on a frame built for tiny old screens. Even a generous 320x240 (QVGA) preset keeps only a small fraction of the original detail, and nothing in the converter can put that detail back.

The RAW is also developed and baked in. A CR2 holds high-bit-depth sensor data (Canon's 14-bit class) with headroom to recover highlights and reset white balance after the shot. To write a video frame, the converter demosaics it to ordinary 8-bit pixels with the current exposure and white balance fixed — the frame is a rendered interpretation, not your editable negative. Keep the original CR2 as your master.

How to Convert CR2 to 3G2

1. Upload Your CR2 File: Drag and drop your .cr2 file onto the page or click "+ Add Files" to browse. You can queue several Canon RAW files at once.
2. Set the Image Duration: Under "Image Duration", pick how long the still is held — from a single frame up to 10 seconds, with 5 seconds as the default. This becomes the length of the clip.
3. Set Video Resolution and Codec: Under "Video resolution" choose a "Preset Resolutions" value such as 144p or 240p to match an old handset, and leave the "Preset" quality on "Very High (Recommended)"; "Background Color" (black by default) fills any letterbox bars. The "Video Codec" under Advanced Options defaults to H.264 — switch to H.263 for the oldest CDMA phones.
4. Convert and Download: Click "Convert" and download your 3G2. No sign-up, no watermark.

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I convert my CR2 to 3G2 or to 3GP?

Pick 3G2 only if your target device or software specifically names the .3g2 extension; otherwise prefer 3GP, which is the more widely recognized of the two. The formats are near-identical containers — both built on the ISO base media file format and carrying the same H.263 / MPEG-4 / H.264 video. 3G2 was the 3GPP2 format for CDMA2000 phones (Verizon and Sprint lineage), while 3GP was the 3GPP format for GSM phones. The CDMA-specific audio codecs that distinguish 3G2 do not apply to a silent photo, so for this conversion the choice is purely which extension your device will accept.

How much resolution does my Canon photo lose going to 3G2?

A lot. A modern CR2 is around 5472x3648 (about 20 megapixels), while the classic 3G target QCIF is 176x144 — more than a thirtyfold reduction on each axis. Even the larger 3G2 presets like 320x240 keep only a small fraction of the original detail. You can choose a higher value under "Video resolution", but 3G2 is fundamentally a small-screen format and will never match the photo's native sharpness or what an H.264 MP4 preserves at full size. For a usable picture, render CR2 to JPG instead.

Do I lose the RAW editing latitude when I convert CR2 to a video?

Yes. A CR2 stores high-bit-depth sensor data (Canon's 14-bit class) with room to recover highlights, lift shadows, and change white balance after the shot. Writing a video frame requires developing it into ordinary 8-bit pixels, so the current white balance and exposure get baked into the 3G2 and that latitude is gone in the clip. Keep the original CR2 as your master and set exposure and white balance in a RAW editor first if the look matters.

Why is my CR2-to-3G2 clip silent, and how long is it?

It is silent because a photo contains no audio, so image-to-video conversion omits the audio track entirely rather than padding it with silence — there is nothing to lose. This is also why 3G2's CDMA voice codecs (EVRC, QCELP, SMV) never come into play here. The length comes from "Image Duration": set it to 5 seconds and the single rendered frame is held for 5 seconds. In our testing, one developed CR2 held for 5 seconds at a 240p H.263 preset produced a very small, silent clip — exactly what a legacy 3G2 target expects.

Do CDMA networks still exist, and does that matter for a 3G2 from a photo?

The CDMA2000 networks 3G2 was designed for have been shut down in the US — Verizon retired its CDMA network on December 31, 2022, and other carriers did the same around then. A 3G2 file still plays fine offline on a compatible handset or in a desktop player like VLC, but you cannot send it over a live CDMA connection anymore. In practice, a 3G2 made from a photo today is for an offline legacy device, an archive, or a test setup — not active mobile messaging. For anything you intend to share now, CR2 to MP4 is the right target.

My old phone still refuses the 3G2 file — what should I change?

Very old CDMA handsets expect H.263 video at a low resolution, not H.264. Set the "Video Codec" to H.263 under Advanced Options and pick a 144p or 240p "Preset Resolutions" value, then test one short clip on the device before converting a batch. If it still will not load, the device may want 3GP rather than 3G2 — try CR2 to 3GP — or its storage may be too small, in which case drop to a lower resolution preset or run the result through the video compressor first.

How are my files handled, and how long are they kept?

Your CR2 is uploaded over an encrypted connection, rendered on our servers, and deleted automatically a few hours after conversion — no sign-up, no watermark, and your photos are never shared or made public. Recent Canon mirrorless bodies (EOS R and M50 era, roughly 2018 onward) write .cr3 rather than .cr2, and this page will not accept those — use a CR3 converter for those files.