Have you seen an ominous warning about your phone's storage space? Have you ever pulled out your phone to show someone a particular photo only to have to scroll through minutes to find it? If you've accumulated gigabytes of images over the years, you can reclaim that space by organizing your photo library and deleting other unnecessary apps and files. Here's a guide to doing just that, using free tools you probably already have installed on your phone.
Check your storage
To begin the cleanup process, first check the space on your device and what is taking up that space.
On most Android devices, open the Settings app, select Storage, and check how much space is available.
On a Samsung Galaxy device, open the Settings app, select “Device care” or “Device maintenance,” then tap “Storage.” On some phones, you can scroll down to Storage.
On an iPhone, open the Settings app, select “General,” then select “iPhone Storage” to see how much free space you have on your phone. The steps are similar on an iPad.
Remove Duplicates
Removing identical copies of photos is an easy way to reclaim your turf, and while there are subscription apps (such as Duplicates Cleaner for Android and Phone Cleaner for iOS) that will consolidate all kinds of duplicate files, consider the free options for your phone.
In Apple's iOS Photos app, tap the Albums icon at the bottom of the screen, then scroll down to the Utilities area. Tap Duplicates. The next screen will show all of the photos and videos that have multiple copies in your library, next to a Merge button. The Merge option will keep the highest-resolution copy (and any embedded information) and move the lower-resolution versions to the app's Recently Deleted album.
Samsung has a similar tool for tracking duplicate files on Galaxy devices.[マイ ファイル]Tap the icon and select[ストレージの分析]Select . On the next screen[重複ファイル]Select to view the list.
Open the Files app, tap the menu icon in the top-left corner,[クリーンアップ]The next screen will show you various items you can delete to save space, including duplicates, downloads, screenshots, rarely used apps, large files, and more.
Personal review
Though tedious, scrolling through and manually deleting what you don't need is a precise way to organize your photos and videos. If your library is huge, splitting the project into daily sessions while riding public transport (or during other waiting times) will gradually whittle down your collection. Don't forget to check out third-party photo apps to store your photos, too.
Deleted photos don't disappear immediately. Most systems store recently deleted photos and videos for at least 30 days before permanently deleting them, unless you manually empty the Trash or Deleted Items folder.
If you have photos you want to keep and don't use online backup, export copies to your computer using a transfer method such as email, Android Quick Share, or Apple's AirDrop. (Make sure your computer has a backup system.)
Receive a proposal
Need more help? Apple has tips on its support site, and the iPhone's storage screen has recommendations for deleting old files and apps. Samsung's site has ideas for Galaxy users. In your user account settings, Google Photos has “Free up space” and “Manage storage” tools that list files to review and delete.
Suggestions usually involve moving photos off your phone to an online server, or onto an external SD memory card if your phone has a card slot, which will allow you to reclaim space on your phone as you offload the files.
Services like Apple's iCloud for Photos, Google Photos, Samsung Cloud, or Dropbox don't physically store files on your device, so you can still view your images but they free up space – they offer free space to start with, but once it's full you'll have to pay extra.
When you delete photos that you've backed up or synced, such as from your iPhone, Google Photos, etc., they will disappear from all devices connected to that account.
sort out
Once you've organized your photo library, you can organize it even further. For years, Android and iOS have automatically grouped your photos into albums based on the people in them, the places they were taken, and other elements, but you can also create your own collections.
To move photos into your albums in Google Photos, Samsung's Gallery app, or Apple Photos, tap the New Album option, give it a name, and select the photos you want to add. In Apple Photos, you can also create folders and other albums within those folders to group similar albums together.
Sure, organizing your devices takes time, but it means you'll be able to find them faster when you want to show off your photos, and you'll have more space to install more stuff.