Google Photos Will Soon Allow Users To Archive Pictures

Google Photos, Google’s cloud service for storing users’ photos and videos, will be getting an upgrade soon. In a recent APK teardown, v2.10 of the app might possibly let users archive photos.

The APK (Android application package) for v2.10 of the Google Photos app contains references to possible upcoming changes to how the service works. The APK teardown and what was discovered therein were shared by Cody Toombs from Android Police.

Based on the code inside the Google Photos v2.10 APK, archiving photos will function similarly to how messages on Gmail are archived. Photos that users choose to archive won’t be deleted, but will simply be taken down from the main list of photos saved.

Archived photos on Google’s app will simply be moved to another container that’s completely separate from the main photo stream. Users will be able to look at archived photos by tapping on the new link in the nav drawer on the left side.

As for how to archive images on Google Photos, Android Police states that the command will be located on the overflow menu represented by the three-dot icon on the top right hand side of the app. This also appears to be the same menu where users will be able to remove photos from the archive.

Most of the necessary codes to implement this new feature are there and its possible that archiving for Google Photos could launch at any time soon. However, these codes doesn’t confirm that the feature is complete, only that an immediate rollout from the server-side is possible.

Aside from archiving photos, Google Photos appears to have brought improvements to RAW support. RAW photos can now be displayed in full screen right on the Google Photos app without the need for another app for file management. RAW photos will also start synching to Google Photos right on the user’s smartphone.

Lastly, assistant cards on Google Photos just got a makeover. Texts are much bigger and easier to read, while links are now grey instead of blue. The changes appear to be simply aesthetic with no indication of entirely new functionalities.

Last month, Google Photos for Android was updated to make it easier for users to organize and view albums. The albums tab was separated into three sections: the user's camera roll, photos taken with other apps and actual photo albums, accoridng to The Verge.