Help! google ending free unlimited original quality storage today for pixel 2?

[JustMe]

I have a google pixel 2, and admit I have pretty much done no other back up for my photos other than having them on google photos for at least a couple of years. I had seen info indicating something about free storage changing in June and figured I would worry about that a little later. Today, I got a reddit e-mail indicating that something is changing today. My brain must be really fried because I am having a hard time figuring out what exactly will change today and what I need to do. I am so overwhelmed and this was not in the plans today. Anyone know what exactly this means? Will be photos already there be allowed to stay as is? What about new photos?

Also, has anyone exported photos from google photos to a usb? Would this be the thing to do?

Thanks for any help!

[jgenie]

I’m not familiar with google but Amazon offers free photo storage for Prime members. Any chance you have Prime?

[SnuggleBuggles]

There have been no new emails directly from Google. Not sure how valid a random reddit email would be.
I use Google Photos too and this is from the email they sent:

All photos and videos you back up in High quality before June 1, 2021 are exempt from this change and will not count toward your Google Account storage. This includes all of your existing content uploaded in High quality. Do I need to do anything right away? No, you can continue to use Google Photos to back up your photos and videos. After June 1, 2021 we will reach out and send you reminders when you are nearing your storage limit. Most users will have years before they need to take action. When will I reach my free 15 GB of storage? We created a [COLOR=#1A73E8 !important]personalized estimate[/COLOR] that shows how much time you have until you reach your quota. This estimate takes into account how frequently you back up photos, videos and other content to your Google Account. What can I do to manage my storage? On June 1, 2021, we will be launching a new storage management tool which will help you easily find and delete dark, blurry, and otherwise unwanted content. You can also purchase more storage with [COLOR=#1A73E8 !important]Google One[/COLOR] where available.

[JustMe]

Thanks for the replies!

SnuggleBuggles, I meant to link an article. Here is is
https://9to5google.com/2021/01/15/go...hotos-storage/

It is reassuring to see the e-mail you posted. I had received that and thought maybe I had missed something...still not sure what is meant in this article, but I tried to find the original support page they linked and could not.

I do have Amazon Prime so that is a thought if I am stuck at some point.

would still love to know about if people back photos up in an additional way if you use google photos or even Amazon prime. If so, what do you use to back up and is export from google photos easy?

[jgenie]

Thanks for the replies!

SnuggleBuggles, I meant to link an article. Here is is
https://9to5google.com/2021/01/15/go...hotos-storage/

It is reassuring to see the e-mail you posted. I had received that and thought maybe I had missed something...still not sure what is meant in this article, but I tried to find the original support page they linked and could not.

I do have Amazon Prime so that is a thought if I am stuck at some point.

would still love to know about if people back photos up in an additional way if you use google photos or even Amazon prime. If so, what do you use to back up and is export from google photos easy?

I have my photos on an external hard drive and on Amazon photos.

[candaceb]

Thanks for the replies!

SnuggleBuggles, I meant to link an article. Here is is
https://9to5google.com/2021/01/15/go...hotos-storage/

It is reassuring to see the e-mail you posted. I had received that and thought maybe I had missed something...still not sure what is meant in this article, but I tried to find the original support page they linked and could not.

I do have Amazon Prime so that is a thought if I am stuck at some point.

would still love to know about if people back photos up in an additional way if you use google photos or even Amazon prime. If so, what do you use to back up and is export from google photos easy?

I pay for extra storage with google and back up everything there. I have the family plan so DS can use it to back up his photos off his phone too. I'm on the 100GB plan and it is well worth the $20/year.

[JustMe]

I pay for extra storage with google and back up everything there. I have the family plan so DS can use it to back up his photos off his phone too. I'm on the 100GB plan and it is well worth the $20/year.

candaceb, $20/yr is pretty cheap. I might end up doing that at least for the first year until I figure this out. So, do you feel like that is all the back up you need or do you have your photos on an external drive or something else as well?

[candaceb]

candaceb, $20/yr is pretty cheap. I might end up doing that at least for the first year until I figure this out. So, do you feel like that is all the back up you need or do you have your photos on an external drive or something else as well?

My best photos of the year end up on Shutterfly to make our calendar, but other than that this is the only backup. I figure if google goes down, the whole world is going down with it. I have all my documents there too.

[JustMe]

My best photos of the year end up on Shutterfly to make our calendar, but other than that this is the only backup. I figure if google goes down, the whole world is going down with it. I have all my documents there too.

(in response to "if google goes down, the whole world is going down with it".

Thanks for the response!

[gatorsmom]

candaceb, $20/yr is pretty cheap. I might end up doing that at least for the first year until I figure this out. So, do you feel like that is all the back up you need or do you have your photos on an external drive or something else as well?

I agree, that’s pretty inexpensive. I am not sure how Dh is backing up our photos but this is a great backup plan. Thanks Candaceb for the suggestion!