Why is iCloud Photo Library so bad?

[megalaser]

Seems crazy to me, happens over and over again, on multiple iPhones (I have a 6S at the moment, did the same thing with my 6 and 6 Plus) . . . . . I take say 8 photos, on Wi-Fi . . . . what happens? Nothing, instead of just uploading the photos from the phone to iCloud Photo Library, the phone just has a fit, sites there getting hot, processor working overtime, (I have a 160mbps Internet connection) . . . 'waiting to upload 8 photos' . . . . .'waiting to upload 8 photos' . . . . . 'waiting to upload 8 photos' then finally after 15 minutes of this . . . . 'uploading 8 photos' . . . . 'uploading 8 photos' . . . . 'uploading 8 photos' . . . . battery dropping at rate of 1% per minute, phone overheating . . . . 'uploading 8 photos' . . . . 'uploading 8 photos' . . . . half hour later, I check the photos app on my Mac Pro - none of them arrived, I check the phone . . 'uploading 8 photos' . . . . 'uploading 8 photos' . . . . 'uploading 8 photos' . . . .

Is this the amazing new feature that Tim Cook was talking about a year and a half ago?

 

[ZEEN0j]

My photos upload instantly. So there must be something else that is having an issue.

 

[Armen]

I agree. I turned it on, signed up for 50GB storage for 99 cents and then when I realized the interface was so freakin bad I cancelled the storage and turned off library. I'm now looking into google photos.

 

[megalaser]

I discovered a fix on another thread, there must be a bug because this fixed it . . . . .
What worked for me was going into the Photos app, tapping Albums, then Recently Deleted, tapping Select, then Delete All. After that, upload & sync worked.

 

[OTACORB]

Google Photo's... No think you... Just another way for them to parse through your personal stuff. ZERO Google products on my devices!

It does take a bit of time for video to upload to the iCloud... but photos load pretty darn quickly..

 

[docprego]

I actually really like iCloud Photo Library. It's just incredibly convenient for me to photograph at will and then find the photos sitting in the photos app on my Mac and iPad.

My only criticism is that at times it's slow to send new photos to the Cloud. Sometimes it just doesn't, but I have found a trick that helps. If the photos are not uploading I launch the photos app on the device that has the photos I want uploaded. Once I am actively in the photos app they begin to sync to the Cloud. I think this is unfortunate as it takes away from some of the convenience that this feature offers. I am going to try megalaser's fix above in post #4 and see if that remedies this issue.

 

[Aston441]

Google Photos FTW. I dragged 10 years worth of images, just by dragging three hard drives onto Chrome, let it churn away for a day, and now everything is instantly accessible from any device, organized, and unlimited and free forever. All my photos and movies in one place for the first time in my life. Apple couldn't pull off something so simple and easy to use in their wildest dreams.

 

[Alonso Quijano]

Google Photos FTW. I dragged 10 years worth of images, just by dragging three hard drives onto Chrome, let it churn away for a day, and now everything is instantly accessible from any device, organized, and unlimited and free forever. All my photos and movies in one place for the first time in my life. Apple couldn't pull off something so simple and easy to use in their wildest dreams.

It's free because you and your data are the product. Hope the convenience is worth it.

 

[cbrand493]

If you're against google, I'd suggest Dropbox with the 1TB storage upgrade. That's what I use to store all my photos and it's fantastic.

 

[Alonso Quijano]

If you're against google, I'd suggest Dropbox with the 1TB storage upgrade. That's what I use to store all my photos and it's fantastic.

This. Dropbox + encrypting your data is the only way to go.

 

[The Doctor11]

Google Photo's... No think you... Just another way for them to parse through your personal stuff. ZERO Google products on my devices!

You don't have any of them?!

As a Google Photos user I say it's a great alternative! It's fast, unlimited, and does cool thing like make gifs. Search is also amazing, I can legit search dog and see pictures of my dog.

 

[Alonso Quijano]

You don't have any of them?!

As a Google Photos user I say it's a great alternative! It's fast, unlimited, and does cool thing like make gifs. Search is also amazing, I can legit search dog and see pictures of my dog.

The problem here is Google doesn't operate ethically. You do realize that you can only use that functionality because Google scans every image you upload? That's not cool from a privacy standpoint.

 

[The Doctor11]

It's free because you and your data are the product. Hope the convenience is worth it.

Ehhhh probably worth it.

 

[The Doctor11]

The problem here is Google doesn't operate ethically. You do realize that you can only use that functionality because Google scans every image you upload? That's not cool from a privacy standpoint.

Amazing from a search standpoint! But I see your point, and I also see why people wouldn't want to do this.

 

[OTACORB]

Google Photos FTW. I dragged 10 years worth of images, just by dragging three hard drives onto Chrome, let it churn away for a day, and now everything is instantly accessible from any device, organized, and unlimited and free forever. All my photos and movies in one place for the first time in my life. Apple couldn't pull off something so simple and easy to use in their wildest dreams.

Tis true that Apple's Photos aren't available on any platform but Apple, so in this regard Google clearly has the edge. However, I will not use Google because they parse your data like maggots on dead roadkill. I did the same thing you did except with Apple, since all my devices are Apple this is no issue. Google is free, but there is a reason for that, they love you putting on your stuff on their servers.... you make them lots of money. I'll pay for my space before I give Google that. Like others said, the best option is Dropbox!

 

[kevinof]

The problem here is Google doesn't operate ethically. You do realize that you can only use that functionality because Google scans every image you upload? That's not cool from a privacy standpoint.

Total rubbish.

 

[OTACORB]

Total rubbish.

and... they especially love people like you! Keep telling yourself that! LOL

 

[Alonso Quijano]

Total rubbish.

Then how would Google be able to provide you with the ability to search for such things? How would Google be able to provide you this for free?

 

[OTACORB]

You don't have any of them?!

As a Google Photos user I say it's a great alternative! It's fast, unlimited, and does cool thing like make gifs. Search is also amazing, I can legit search dog and see pictures of my dog.

Not one of them! I will admit that I will sometimes use YouTube, but only via the browser and I don't login to the site. It is very easy to see how they parse your data. You visit a web site and the next day you get spam from providers of that web site, they also index your photos and scan them. Anyone that doesn't believe that is just the type of customer Google loves. They also parse your emails, any real company that is really serious about security would NEVER use Google email. You use the maps.. they track all your travel data and suddenly you are getting ads and spam email for places you've visited. I was showing a friend of mine they had data that went back for many years. It totally freaked him out. You can turn some of it off, but that just means it's not visible, I have no way of knowing if they really just aren't showing it to me, but continue to do so. I just don't trust these guys at all. You can call me paranoid if you want, but it's real and provable enough for me.

 

[Abazigal]

Icloud will malfunction from time to time. When it works, it works pretty well. Then there are times when the photos will just not seem to sync over wifi. I don't know what the reason is, so it's more of "connect and pray".

 

[The Doctor11]

Not one of them! I will admit that I will sometimes use YouTube, but only via the browser and I don't login to the site. It is very easy to see how they parse your data. You visit a web site and the next day you get spam from providers of that web site, they also index your photos and scan them. Anyone that doesn't believe that is just the type of customer Google loves. They also parse your emails any real company that is really serious about security would NEVER use Google email. You use the maps.. they track all your travel data and suddenly you are getting ads and spam email for places you've visited.

I 100% agree, using Google gives you 0 privacy. I see ads all the time for programming classes, and websites that make apps and all that crap, which surprisingly enough isn't far off from what I do online.

I got to say though, Google knows what I'm gonna search before I search it. It sounds bad but it's actually kinda cool when you forget about all the privacy stuff. For example, earlier today I started to type "random number" in the search bar and suggestions came up immediately with only a few characters
"random number swift"
"random number swift 2"
"how to get random number in swift"
This kind of stuff happens all the time to me. It's creepy but convenient.

We all personally have to make a decision on whether or not services are worth someone knowing more about what I do than me. Back on track to the thread at hand, for some Google Photos will be the perfect alternative for others Dropbox will be.

 

[raab]

Not one of them! I will admit that I will sometimes use YouTube, but only via the browser and I don't login to the site. It is very easy to see how they parse your data. You visit a web site and the next day you get spam from providers of that web site, they also index your photos and scan them. Anyone that doesn't believe that is just the type of customer Google loves. They also parse your emails, any real company that is really serious about security would NEVER use Google email. You use the maps.. they track all your travel data and suddenly you are getting ads and spam email for places you've visited. I was showing a friend of mine they had data that went back for many years. It totally freaked him out. You can turn some of it off, but that just means it's not visible, I have no way of knowing if they really just aren't showing it to me, but continue to do so. I just don't trust these guys at all. You can call me paranoid if you want, but it's real and provable enough for me.

Unless you're hopping through multiple VPN's the mere fact that you're on the internet means you're being tracked one way or another, not just by Google. There's no such thing as privacy on the internet. Do you use Facebook at all of interest?

You are one of millions of people whose data is parsed, unless you're of some importance your data is so insignificant its not funny.

I happily let Google retain my email, search history, location history, photos etc etc and I'm yet to see targeted ads or be "spammed" just because I visited a website or visited a place using Google's services.

Google uses interest based ads, which you know.. shows you ads you might be interested in based on previous search history etc.. you can also opt out of that too https://support.google.com/ads/answer/2662922?hl=en

You have to be living under a rock if you're not aware of location tracking which you have to OPT IN to in the first place. It's one of the first things thats asked when you setup a new Android phone as an example, I'd hazard a guess your friend just clicks yes to everything without reading.

I'm not defending Googles practices by any means but ignorance is bliss I guess.

 

[Max(IT)]

I agree. I turned it on, signed up for 50GB storage for 99 cents and then when I realized the interface was so freakin bad I cancelled the storage and turned off library. I'm now looking into google photos.

And do you consider a good idea to relay on Google for your personal photos? O my...
iCloud works flawlessly for me. Just bought a new MacBook Pro and my photos are all here.

You don't have any of them?!

As a Google Photos user I say it's a great alternative! It's fast, unlimited, and does cool thing like make gifs. Search is also amazing, I can legit search dog and see pictures of my dog.

I try to avoid many as I can...

Total rubbish.

totally true.
Google 's main activity is data mining. They offer those shiny free apps for your data.

 

[Phil A.]

Not one of them! I will admit that I will sometimes use YouTube, but only via the browser and I don't login to the site. It is very easy to see how they parse your data. You visit a web site and the next day you get spam from providers of that web site, they also index your photos and scan them. Anyone that doesn't believe that is just the type of customer Google loves. They also parse your emails, any real company that is really serious about security would NEVER use Google email. You use the maps.. they track all your travel data and suddenly you are getting ads and spam email for places you've visited. I was showing a friend of mine they had data that went back for many years. It totally freaked him out. You can turn some of it off, but that just means it's not visible, I have no way of knowing if they really just aren't showing it to me, but continue to do so. I just don't trust these guys at all. You can call me paranoid if you want, but it's real and provable enough for me.

Google don't scan any data at all (including emails) from paid google apps accounts

 

[Alonso Quijano]

Unless you're hopping through multiple VPN's the mere fact that you're on the internet means you're being tracked one way or another, not just by Google. There's no such thing as privacy on the internet. Do you use Facebook at all of interest?

You are one of millions of people whose data is parsed, unless you're of some importance your data is so insignificant its not funny.

I happily let Google retain my email, search history, location history, photos etc etc and I'm yet to see targeted ads or be "spammed" just because I visited a website or visited a place using Google's services.

You have to be living under a rock if you're not aware of location tracking which you have to OPT IN to in the first place. It's one of the first things thats asked when you setup a new Android phone as an example, I'd hazard a guess your friend just clicks yes to everything without reading.

1. While total privacy can never be gauranteed, using an open source operating system along with a decent VPN will go a long ways.

2. Regardless of the importance of my data, the collection of it goes against what I believe in.

3. You can use social media safely without being tracked