Google Photos unlimited backups going away :(

[B. Diddy]

That's a good idea -- but I would still want Original Quality backups, not just High Quality (the Pixel 3's unlimited Original Quality backup benefit goes away in Feb 2022).

 

[cardboard60]

SD cards are unreliable -- it's not a good idea to use SD cards as the sole storage for important data. I prefer cloud storage, since it's readily available wherever I am.

WoW

I've never had a problem with a SD card.

 

[Mooncatt]

I was already planning to get an external storage drive, so this may push that up a notch. I'd still want some sort of off site backup option, but don't like the idea of monthly rental fees. If anything, I just want once and done payments.

 

[B. Diddy]

WoW

I've never had a problem with a SD card.

That's fortunate. But if you look through the forums, you'll find lots of instances of SD cards failing. Just be cautious, and make sure you don't rely on an SD card as the only place to store important data.

 

[ManiacJoe]

That's fortunate. But if you look through the forums, you'll find lots of instances of SD cards failing. Just be cautious, and make sure you don't rely on an SD card as the only place to store important data.

Yes, memory cards fail just like hard drives do.

 

[cardboard60]

Again

I've never had a SD card to fail.
I use a Scandisk Ultra Plus.
And I also STICK THE SCANDISK IN MY COMPUTER AND BACK THE PHOTOS UP.
no way this can fail. With pictures backed up in 2 places.

 

[rexxsor]

Now, I'm not against using SD cards, but really that isn't the issue here.

1. Storing photos to SD cards then backing up to your computer is fine, but your photos won't be readily accessible from everywhere.

2. Manual process of backing up to my PC can be missed. Also, I find it a very tedious process to do daily/regularly. If I was on a week long trip and something happens to my phone/SD card, all my photos are gone. Also, not unlimited storage.

3. SD cards are a convenient way to expand storage, but it is not unlimited and sooner or later will be used up. Some people take a ton of photos and videos on their phones. My backed up photos in Google Photos are cleared from my phone automatically after 30/60 days depending on my settings.

4. Not all phones have an SD card slot.

5. Besides the unlimited cloud storage (which will soon disappear), Google Photos has several other benefits. Myself and others on this thread likely prefer this convenience.

 

[B. Diddy]

And I also STICK THE SCANDISK IN MY COMPUTER AND BACK THE PHOTOS UP.
no way this can fail. With pictures backed up in 2 places.

Right, that's a good thing to do.

 

[Kizzy Catwoman]

I have a little used 460GB ssd in a hard drive caddy. So I requested my Google photos data in 50GB data files today. Have downloaded the first block and put it onto the ssd. Once I have backed it all up I will keep using photos until end of June and will then switch to only using Amazon photos and OneDrive. Amazon photos gives you unlimited photo storage as long as you have prime. I use Prime all the time so it is worth it to me, but I will also have everything backed up to ssd.

 

[Morty2264]

I'll still stick with Pixels. They'll still have the best camera software, as well as the best update policy, and those are still enough for me.

Though I love my Samsung Galaxy S10, I am certainly missing the Pixel camera and the regular updates. It will be a tough call when I go to upgrade next year.

 

[eric002]

I'll still stick with Pixels. They'll still have the best camera software, as well as the best update policy, and those are still enough for me.

I wholeheartedly agree with you as well!!

 

[straygator]

My P2XL's unlimited original quality storage on Google Photos is set to expire in January 2021, so I've decided to buy a Pixel 5 and simultaneously purchase the 2TB storage option from Google One so that I can continue to upload all my photos and videos in original quality to Google Photos. I consider $100 per year to be a reasonable cost for the security and convenience of access afforded by Google Photos, especially since my wife and children can share the Google One storage for their own photo collections. In addition, to ensure that my photos and videos are preserved, I not only download them to my computer on a regular basis, but periodically transfer them from the computer to a 256G Samsung USB thumb drive, which I replace annually. I keep the current thumb drive on my keychain so that it is always handy, and store the thumb drives from prior years in a secure location. As a result, I have a cumulative collection of my photos going back nearly a decade stored on multiple devices at different locations. That may seem like overkill to some, but if you regard your photo and video records to be a priceless, irreplaceable family treasure, the extra time and expense it entails is relatively trivial.

 

[B. Diddy]

My P2XL's unlimited original quality storage on Google Photos is set to expire in January 2021, so I've decided to buy a Pixel 5 and simultaneously purchase the 2TB storage option from Google One so that I can continue to upload all my photos and videos in original quality to Google Photos. I consider $100 per year to be a reasonable cost for the security and convenience of access afforded by Google Photos, especially since my wife and children can share the Google One storage for their own photo collections. In addition, to ensure that my photos and videos are preserved, I not only download them to my computer on a regular basis, but periodically transfer them from the computer to a 256G Samsung USB thumb drive, which I replace annually. I keep the current thumb drive on my keychain so that it is always handy, and store the thumb drives from prior years in a secure location. As a result, I have a cumulative collection of my photos going back nearly a decade stored on multiple devices at different locations. That may seem like overkill to some, but if you regard your photo and video records to be a priceless, irreplaceable family treasure, the extra time and expense it entails is relatively trivial.

You also get Google's VPN along with that (if you're in the US): https://one.google.com/about/vpn

 

[Evilguppy]

I was on Google Photos but no more. I am now using the Samsung Gallery with some kind of Microsoft thingy don't ask me what i don't know my *** from my elbow when it comes to this stuff but it seems to be working.

 

[chosen1_88]

My wife was on an iPhone and was uploading around 50GB of photos and videos per year to Google Photos. I need to actually remove photos from her phone every 6 months and transfer them onto an external HDD. We also use OneDrive Business and back up our photos there, but prefer the ability to access all of our photos whenever and wherever through shared libraries, hence why Google Photos was handy. Her iPhone's speaker just died and I gave her my OG Pixel (with a battery I just replaced myself) so we are probably fine for now.

Long term I'm not sure what we will do. Even OneDrive with 1 TB of storage worries me that eventually we will run out of space and then I need to remove photos from the service (meaning I would still have them on a HDD but won't be able to readily view them). I'll probably need to buy the 2 TB Google One plan ultimately.