Starting tomorrow, June 1, Google Photos will change forever by ditching the free and unlimited storage that made the service so popular. In a poll, though, most of our readers said Google Photos is worth paying for.
While the end of free, unlimited storage may leave a sour taste for many longtime Google Photos users, it’s easy to see why over 68% of our readers said they’d stick with the service. About 23% said the reason was mainly that switching platforms would be a hassle, but 46% of the nearly 5,000 surveyed said that Google Photos is worth paying for.
Why? Even without unlimited storage, Google’s service really does have a strong value proposition. Photos offers easy cloud storage that works across platforms and integrates some genuinely great features that you won’t find elsewhere. Google offers powerful search, OCR with Lens integration, useful editing tools on mobile, and excellent sharing features, too.
Notably, though, a little over 30% of those surveyed said they’d be switching to another service, over 20% of which are doing so mainly because of the removal of unlimited storage. It’s also rather easy to see where these users are coming from. Google breaking its promise of unlimited storage makes other options look more attractive. Amazon Photos was mentioned by some of our readers since, with Prime, the service offers free and unlimited photo backups. Some users have also taken the time to switch to local backups using physical hardware in their homes. 9to5Toys has a breakdown on how you can do that.
More on Google Photos:
- Google Photos unlimited storage ends June 1 — How to get the most out of free and paid tiers
- Pixel owners will still get these Google Photos storage perks going forward
- Google Photos adds ‘Manage storage’ page with ‘review and delete’ tool
Author: Ben Schoon
Source: 9TO5Google
