Google launched Google+ Photos, a video and photo storage and sharing service, in May this year, but by Aug. 1, Google+ Photos will be shut down. The search giant is now prompting users to make the switch to Google Photos, which will allow users to store unlimited photos for free.
Google+ Photos is available for Android, iOS and the web browser. The company announced that the service will first shut down for Android then for iOS and the Web.
Google+ Photos was tied to the company's social network called Google+ that was quite unsuccessful. Google launched Google+ as a competitor to Facebook but failed to attract users. However, many people preferred Google+ photo storage service. Now Google Photos will be a standalone product that will allow for easy storage and organization of photos.
With Google+ Photos for Android shutting down in less than a couple of weeks, Google is encouraging Google+ Photos users switch as soon as possible.
Google+ Photos has been sending prompts to Android users that includes a download link to Google Photos.
"Don't worry, all your photos and videos will still be saved and available after you switch to the new, stand-alone Google Photos app. With the new app you'll still be able to backup, edit, and share your photos and videos, with unlimited storage, automatic organization, and more," stated a Google+ blog post.
Customers who have already downloaded Google Photos have also praised the new service.
"I use the app more than Apple Photos, it allows all the images to be saved in the cloud and not on my phone. I have the backup's set automatically through wifi only so my images get uploaded to the cloud, then I manually delete them from my iPhone 6 to free up space," says a user on Apple App store.
Google Photos is available as a free download on Google Play and on iTunes. The Android app requires a device running on Android 4.0 KitKat or above. The iOS version of the app needs iOS 8.1 or later.
