We knew it was coming, even though they’ve announced it only now. Google is effectively shutting down its previous photo cloud service, Google+ Photos. This is practically because of the new “unlimited” Google Photos that they released last May. Users of the previous service have been receiving prompts to migrate to the new one, and if you value the photos you’ve stored in the former, you better upload them to the latter.
Okay, things are getting a bit confusing, which is probably why they’ve also decided to shut down Google+ Photos. This was previously where Google users could automatically upload photos they’ve taken from their smartphones or tablets or the ones stored in their computers. But usability wasn’t that great, and there were some misconceptions that it posts in public when you upload it, that is why a lot of users did not use it. So when Google was rethinking not just this one, but the whole Google+ experience, rumors started flying that they were going to shut it down soon or make it over into something different.
So when May came around and they introduced the stand alone Google Photos, which some say is the best photo storage service around, we knew the days of Google+ Photos are numbered. It will be shut down on Android first, and then eventually on the Web and other platforms. Users should now start migrating their photos to the new service, where they will still be able to backup, edit, and share their favorite photographic and visual moments.
But if you decide that you don’t want to use Google Photos, you will be able to access and export your content from Google+ Photos on photos.google.com. You can export it to your device or computer using Google Takeout. Google+ Photos will shut down on Android by August 1.
SOURCE: +Google
