How many color variations are supported by an 8-bit color palette?

An 8-bit color palette supports 256 distinct color variations. This capability comes from the way colors are represented in computing using binary digits (bits). In an 8-bit system, each color channel (red, green, and blue) can have a certain number of values determined by how many bits are allocated to it.

In an 8-bit color mode, the palette itself can typically contain 256 entries, allowing for a maximum of 256 colors to be displayed at once. Each color is assigned a unique value from 0 to 255, which directly corresponds to the potential number of colors represented.

Higher color depths, such as 16-bit, 24-bit, or 32-bit, allow for a significantly larger number of color variations. For example:

• A 16-bit color depth can display 65,536 colors,

• A 24-bit color depth, which is often used in modern displays, can show approximately 16.7 million colors,

• Higher depths, like 30-bit or 32-bit, can represent over a billion colors.

Understanding these color representations is essential for grasping how digital images and displays function, making it clear why 256 is the count of color variations for an 8-bit color