Dal 1 giugno 2021 Google Foto sarà protagonista di un cambiamento importante che impatterà su tutti coloro che lo utilizzano. Ecco come non essere impreparati
Giuseppe Croce Giornalista
Peppe Croce, giornalista dal 2008, si occupa di device elettronici e nuove tecnologie applicate al mondo automotive. È entrato in Libero Tecnologia nel 2018.
È noto da parecchi mesi il motivo per cui per adesso si parla tanto di Google Foto, la galleria di Mountain View che si articola in delle applicazioni per Android e iOS ed in un servizio di archiviazione in cloud. È noto da quando Google lo scorso novembre ha annunciato all’improvviso lo stop allo spazio illimitato per foto e video a partire da giugno 2021.
Un momento che sembrava non dovesse mai arrivare, ma che alla fine è arrivato. And now many are looking for answers to some questions about Google's decision, while those who didn't know Google Photos and only heard about it in the last few days would now like to know more. Google's service offers two ways of uploading content to the cloud: Original Quality, i.e. with a backup without compression, and High Quality, which instead provides a "slightly lower quality" than the original one. The first mode affected and affects the mountain of 15 GB that Google makes available for free to anyone, the second was the basis of the success of Google Photos because there are no limitations on the space occupied.
What is Google Photo and what it offers
Google Photos is a service for storing photos on the physical memory of smartphones and tablets, both Android and iOS, or, if you want, in the cloud. There is in fact an app to download for free through the Play Store and App Store that, if you don't want to upload photos and videos to Google's servers, can be used as a photo gallery.
From June 1 onwards the app will not become useless, it will only be less rich in possibilities for those who do not want to pay a subscription to Google One once the free storage space of 15 GB is used up. Google Photos is in fact part of Google's services, and the free 15GB is shared between services.
To make it as clear as possible, here's an example: if you upload a 13GB file to Google Drive, you'll still have 2GB to use for all your other services - Google Photos included - before you have to delete anything or switch to a paid plan to get more space.
Google Photos, however, is an exceptional photo gallery according to some. In fact, it takes advantage of all of Google's artificial intelligence wisdom, integrates perfectly with Android, and is rationally organized. Probably some of those who have learned to appreciate it over the years will use it even without relying on the cloud.
What will happen to photos already uploaded?
What will happen to content uploaded before June 2021? All previously uploaded High Quality photos and videos will not be affected nor will they affect the available gigabytes. It's "smart" to upload everything by June 1.
What about Google Pixel?
For those who own a Google Pixel 3a or later, nothing will change, not even from June 2021: the storage space on Google Photos in High Quality will remain unlimited. For those who have a Google Pixel 3 the "privilege" expires on January 31, 2022, while for previous generations the considerations made for any other smartphone apply.
How much does Google Photos cost
The paid storage space has the same costs as those provided for Google One, since Google Photos is part of One. It starts at a monthly fee of €1.99 for 100 GB (€19.99/year), €2.99 for 200 GB (€29.99/year) and finally €9.99 for 2 TB (€99.99/year).