Apple has confirmed that it will permanently remove a photo album from iPhones in the next two weeks, and uploading pictures to this album has already ceased.
My Photo Stream, a service launched in 2011 as part of iCloud, allows temporary uploading of photos from one device so they can be viewed on another device with the same service enabled. Users can also import the images to the second device.
This service is limited to storing approximately 1,000 photos for around a month, after which they are automatically deleted from Apple’s iCloud. However, the service will become unavailable in just a few days, so users are urged to save any photos from the album that will soon be deleted.
In a recent statement, Apple revealed that My Photo Stream will no longer be available after July 26. This follows the company’s cessation of new photo uploads on June 26.
Apple has highlighted that My Photo Stream is distinct from iCloud Photos. iCloud Photos will be recommended to keep photos and videos safely stored in iCloud and synced across devices. No further action is needed if users already have iCloud Photos enabled.
To save photos from My Photo Stream, Apple advises users to open the Photos app, tap the Albums section, and then tap My Photo Stream and Select. After choosing the photos to save, they should tap the Share button and Save Image. On Mac computers, the photos will be automatically imported into the photo library.
It also encourages users to enable iCloud Photos to keep their photos accessible across various devices. Note that iCloud provides only 5GB of free space, and additional storage requires a monthly fee.
Users with iOS 8.3 or later on an iPhone, iPadOS 8.3 or later on an iPad, or OS X Yosemite or later on a Mac can turn on iCloud Photos. They can then view their pictures and videos on various Apple devices and even sync them with a Windows PC using iCloud for Windows.
As detailed on the company’s website, pricing for Apple’s iCloud starts at 99 cents for 50GB, $2.99 for 200GB, and $9.99 for 2TB.
