Google Photos gets regular updates every month. The Google Photo service which offers free photo uploads since 2015 will count every pic you upload against your Google account storage cap. You can save photos in normal original quality or high. Unless you’ve still got a first-gen Pixel. Google will offer free photo backups forever on that phone. Here’s s guide on how you can use the 2016 Pixel so that you can keep keeping the free upload thing running.
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The first thing to make sure that you have the necessary hardware. It will be preferable if you have circa-2016 Pixel or Pixel XL hiding in your closet. If you don’t have this then you can snag a used device for $100 or less around the internet. There will be no problem if the device has any wear and tear. It should’ve just capable of uploading photos.
Get unlimited Google Photos storage for life
The upload limits for different devices are changing. The unlimited upload feature guarantee remains in place for the OG Pixels. So, any images you take from your gallery surprisingly capable camera will upload in original quality without hampering your storage. But you don’t want to carry a five-year-old phone, right? The step is to move photos from the original phone to the OG Pixel. When those pics upload, Google Photos treats them as if they were taken on the Pixel (i.e. they don’t count against your cap).
It is possible that you can move files manually between phones. This can be done so if you like needlessly tedious things. but if you want to set up a folder sync utility the Pixel can only live in a drawer someplace. The files can be synced in numerous ways, but you can definitely use the app called Resilio Sync. Another popular app of the same category is FolderSync that lots of people use for similar tasks. But according to me, Resilio is faster and easier to set up. You can also run an FTP server on your Pixel if you’re the DIY sort.
Google Photos storage
In Resilio you can connect your devices by creating a share of the Camera folder on your non-Pixel, and then the resulting QR code needs to be scanned on the folder. Client Codes only work for a few days. For making it work for more days you have to increase that limit. You can even restrict access to certain WiFi networks. The files will be synced over a new sub-directory on the Pixel when the phones can see each other. When you will turn that off all new files will be automatically synced as they’re taken. There are a plethora of other options to customize the app more.
With the help of folder synchronization setup, you can open Google Photos on the Pixel. A box will appear and will ask if you want to sync the newly discovered folder. Give a confirmation, and all those images will go right up to the cloud for free. This has been tested and tried with a fresh Google account and can confirm photos and videos taken on a Galaxy S21 Ultra are uploading from the Pixel in original quality and taking up zero space. There is a possibility that Google will change its mind and kill this workaround, but we can not be sure of that.
