Have you ever wondered, “What is My Photo Stream on Apple Phone?” If you’re an iPhone user, you might have come across this feature.
Let’s explore what My Photo Stream is all about and how it works on your Apple device.
Apple made the My Photo Stream feature to make it easy for people to see the most recent photos on their devices.
It made it possible to sync pictures taken on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, as well as photos uploaded from a Mac or PC, without any problems.
But since it will be shut down on July 26, 2023, users need to know how the change will happen and look into other choices.
What is My Photo Stream?
My Photo Stream was a cloud-based service that sent the most current photos taken on an Apple device to the iCloud server.
The pictures could then be seen on other Apple devices linked to the same Apple ID and imported.
This feature was especially helpful for people who wanted to see their most recent pictures on all of their devices without having to do anything.
Compatibility and Requirements
To use My Photo Stream, your device must meet certain compatibility conditions. My Photo Stream users can get the most out of it on the following devices:
- iOS 5.1 or later on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
- Photos app for OS X Lion 10.7.5 or higher and a Mac
- Apple TV HD or an Apple TV (2nd or 3rd model) with tvOS 5.0 or a later version
- iCloud for Windows on a PC with Windows 7
But users might be unable to use My Photo Stream if they just made their Apple ID.
If this is the case, they can use iCloud Photos, which has similar features.
Understanding My Photo Stream with iCloud Photos
My Photo Stream and iCloud Photos worked together, but there are some important changes between the two.
My Photo Stream only kept photos in iCloud for 30 days before deleting them, but iCloud Photos was a more permanent way to store and share all photos and videos across all devices.
When My Photo Stream and iCloud Photos are both turned on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, photos made with that device are uploaded to both services at the same time.
But if another device with the same Apple ID only had My Photo Stream turned on, pictures taken on that device would only be uploaded to My Photo Stream and wouldn’t show up on machines with only iCloud pictures turned on.
Viewing Photos in My Photo Stream
If you have iOS 8 or later on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, tap Photos > Albums > My Photo Stream.
Mac: Click on Photos, then Albums, and then My Photo Stream.
Apple TV: Go to Settings > Accounts > iCloud on your Apple TV HD and turn on My Photo Stream.
Go to Settings > iCloud > iCloud Photo Settings > Turn on My Photo Stream on an Apple TV of the third or second generation.
When Photos is turned on on a Windows PC, iCloud for Windows makes a folder called iCloud Photos in File Explorer. Whenever a new picture is taken on an iOS device, My Picture Stream automatically saves it to the Downloads folder.
On Windows PCs, users can search for iCloud pictures or follow specific steps for Windows 8.1, Windows 8, and Windows 7 to get to their pictures.
Supported Photo Formats
My Photo Stream worked with many famous photo formats, like JPEG, TIFF, and PNG, as well as most RAW photo formats. But it didn’t work with video or Live Photos, which could only be viewed on iCloud Photos.
Managing My Photo Stream
Users could remove pictures from iCloud and pictures by deleting them from their “My Photo Stream.”
But deleting a picture from My Picture Stream on one device didn’t change the photos that were already on other devices that were imported from My Photo Stream.
My Photo Stream could only store the 1000 most recent photos. This was done to save room on iPhones, iPads, and iPod touch.
Users could look at these pictures or move them to other albums on their devices to keep them there forever.
FAQ
1. Can I use My Photo Stream to back up my photos instead of iCloud Backup or iTunes?
No, My Photo Stream is not meant for long-term photo storage or backup. Photos in My Photo Stream are stored on the iCloud server for 30 days and then deleted. To back up photos, users should use iCloud Backup or iTunes.
2. What resolution are My Photo Stream photos?
Photos downloaded and stored on a Mac or PC are in full resolution. However, on Apple devices (iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Apple TV), photos are delivered in a device-optimized resolution to speed up downloads and save storage space.
3. When do my photos upload to My Photo Stream?
Photos taken on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch automatically upload to My Photo Stream when the user leaves the Camera app and connects to Wi-Fi. On a Mac, new photos imported to the Photos app upload automatically when connected to Wi-Fi or Ethernet.
4. How many photos can My Photo Stream store?
My Photo Stream can store up to the most recent 1000 photos to conserve space on devices. Users can move their favorite photos to other albums to keep them indefinitely.
5. Does My Photo Stream use my iCloud storage?
No, photos uploaded to My Photo Stream do not count against a user’s iCloud storage.
6. Where are my burst mode photos in My Photo Stream?
When using burst mode to capture multiple photos in quick succession, only the user’s favorite photos from the burst are imported to their device. To save all burst mode photos to My Photo Stream, users can enable the “Upload Burst Photos” option in their iCloud settings.
7. What happens to your photos if you turn off My Photo Stream?
When users turn off My Photo Stream, all photos in the My Photo Stream album on that specific device are removed.
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