“Suddenly, tech’s biggest names want to organize your messy lifetime collection of photos,” Joanna Stern reports for The Wall Street Journal. “On Thursday, Google upped the ante against Apple with unlimited storage and some fun photo tricks.”
“At Google’s I/O developers conference, the company released its Photos app for iOS, Android and the Web,” Stern reports. “Like Apple’s recently launched Photos — so much for clever naming — it aims to provide a tidy home for every photo currently scattered across every device you own.”
“While Apple only provides 5GB of free iCloud storage for users, Google will offer free, unlimited cloud storage of photos and videos,” Stern reports. “There is a catch, of course. If photos are over 16 megapixels, they will be stored in a compressed format. You can also store full 1080p videos for free, though anything 4K would be downsized.”
“Once the app has sucked up the photos on your phone, tablet or computer (Mac and PC uploader tools will be available), you’ll be able to search for photos with simple keywords,” Stern reports. “It’s like your own personalized Google Image search. Looking for all the photos you’ve ever taken of your puppy? Just punch in “puppy.” Even more advanced searches like “kissing” returned accurate results in my early testing.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Gauntlet thrown, but just how secure are these photos once you’ve uploaded them to Google and made them searchable? How much privacy does the user really retain? (“By using Google Photos Backup, you agree to the Google Terms of Service” – which was last modified on April 14, 2014).
Hopefully this prompts Apple to lower their iCloud Photo Library storage prices, at least.
One fact remains: There’s no such thing as a free lunch:
How Google Photos will eventually work:
Gee, that’s a rather cheap and dusty treadmill in the background of that photo of her. Weight estimated at 180 lbs. Weight Watchers ads.
Hey, look at that pool! Chlorine ads.
Wow, these two have been to quite a few ball games and concerts. Ticketmaster ads.
Oh look, the same little girl over and over. Must be her kid. Age estimated at two. Toys R Us ads.
Hm, the house looked better in 2009; paint’s really peeling in 2015. Paint ads.
Etcetera ad infinitum.
SEE ALSO:
Apple CEO Cook: Unlike some other companies, Apple won’t invade your right to privacy – March 2, 2015
Survey: People trust U.S. NSA more than Google – October 29, 2014
Apple CEO Tim Cook ups privacy to new level, takes direct swipe at Google – September 18, 2014
Apple will no longer unlock most iPhones, iPads for government, police – even with search warrants – September 18, 2014
U.S. NSA watching, tracking phone users with Google Maps – January 28, 2014
U.S. NSA secretly infiltrated Yahoo, Google data centers worldwide, Snowden documents say – October 30, 2013
Google has already inserted some U.S. NSA code into Android – July 10, 2013
Court rules NSA doesn’t have to reveal its semi-secret relationship with Google – May 22, 2013
Edward Snowden’s privacy tips: ‘Get rid of Dropbox,” avoid Facebook and Google – October 13, 2014
