Google has announced a few notable updates to its Photos app, with some new features powered by its machine-learning technology.

The app can now automatically generate animated GIFs from videos you upload to the service. Google says its technology looks for video segments that capture activity – "a jump into the pool, or even just an adorable smile" – and creates short animations that can then be easily shared over email or social media.

Google Photos
In addition, Photos now uses facial recognition to surface older pictures of people that appear in your most recent uploads, and can also serve up what it considers to be picture 'highlights' from each month – similar to Apple's Memories feature in its native Photos app.

Last but not least, Google Photos now detects sideways photos in your uploads and offers to rotate them in one batch, saving you from having to correct their orientation yourself one by one.

Google Photos is a free download for iPhone and iPad from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Top Rated Comments

JaySoul Avatar
97 months ago
It genuinely gets better every couple of months.

It's one of Google's Top 10 best products they've ever released.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
0038396 Avatar
97 months ago
Apple really needs to catch up. iCloud Photo Library is really embarrassing next to this free service that's better in every way.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dwsolberg Avatar
97 months ago
My hope is that we'll drift back to the good old days when Apple was supplying the hardware and system software, and Google was providing the services. If Apple continues to open up to third party integrations, this could actually happen.

---
Search 800 photos in Apple's Photos app for "dog": 4 results, all dogs.
Search same 800 phones in Google Photo for "dog": 38 results, all dogs.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
balamw Avatar
97 months ago
This app keeps getting better and better, their face and object recognition algorithm is so good it's almost scary...
I recently had the experience of having my 15 year old meet up with friends he had not seen in 7 years. Google identified all three kids as being the same people as when they were kids. Scary indeed!

B
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rudychidiac Avatar
97 months ago
This app keeps getting better and better, their face and object recognition algorithm is so good it's almost scary...

Though I have 2 feature suggestions that would make the app a lot better... The first is a duplicate finder. The second feature is "smart albums" that allows you to add filters, for example an album that automatically detects all photos taken at a certain place, or an album that detects all photos that includes Person X and person Y together.

Apple has a lot of things to learn from Google Photos...
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JaySoul Avatar
97 months ago
My hope is that we'll drift back to the good old days when Apple was supplying the hardware and system software, and Google was providing the services. If Apple continues to open up to third party integrations, this could actually happen.

---
Search 800 photos in Apple's Photos app for "dog": 4 results, all dogs.
Search same 800 phones in Google Photo for "dog": 38 results, all dogs.
Always thought this will naturally occur, but now Google appear to finally be taking phones seriously, so they may wish to start (slowly) eroding Apple.

Google is really amazing at the actually coding aspect of software. Innovation is pretty good as well (creativity in new features, etc.) but their delivery of products is very lackluster. Apple is much better at delivering products and services; providing a much more complete package (ecosystem, all features working hand in hand, etc.).

In this manner, I think google is a much smarter company, and appreciate their work very much.
The problem with Google is they release some amazing products/services, then some other really good ones which suddenly die after 18 months, or get incorporated into something else entirely.

That's why Google Photos is a surprising hit on every level. It's as revolutionary as Gmail was. But something like this awesome new app Google Trips? I'm not going to get too attached to it!!
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

reset password request iphone

Warning: Apple Users Targeted in Phishing Attack Involving Rapid Password Reset Requests

Tuesday March 26, 2024 4:34 pm PDT by
Phishing attacks taking advantage of Apple's password reset feature have become increasingly common, according to a report from KrebsOnSecurity. Multiple Apple users have been targeted in an attack that bombards them with an endless stream of notifications or multi-factor authentication (MFA) messages in an attempt to cause panic so they'll respond favorably to social engineering. An...
maxresdefault

Apple to Launch New iPad Pro and iPad Air Models in May

Thursday March 28, 2024 11:07 am PDT by
Apple will introduce new iPad Pro and iPad Air models in early May, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman previously suggested the new iPads would come out in March, and then April, but the timeline has been pushed back once again. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Apple is working on updates to both the iPad Pro and iPad Air models. The iPad Pro models will...
Generic iOS 18 Feature Purple

iOS 18: What to Expect From 'Biggest' Update in iPhone's History

Wednesday March 27, 2024 11:10 am PDT by
At least some Apple software engineers continue to believe that iOS 18 will be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. "The iOS 18 update is expected to be the most ambitious overhaul of the iPhone's software in its history, according to people working on the upgrade," wrote Gurman, in a r...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces WWDC 2024 Event for June 10 to 14

Tuesday March 26, 2024 10:02 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its 35th annual Worldwide Developers Conference is set to take place from Monday, June 10 to Friday, June 14. As with WWDC events since 2020, WWDC 2024 will be an online event that is open to all developers at no cost. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. WWDC 2024 will include online sessions and labs so that developers can learn about new...
apple maps 3d feature

Apple Maps May Gain Custom Routes With iOS 18

Tuesday March 26, 2024 3:10 pm PDT by
Apple may be planning to add support for "custom routes" in Apple Maps in iOS 18, according to code reviewed by MacRumors. Apple Maps does not currently offer a way to input self-selected routes, with Maps users limited to Apple's pre-selected options, but that may change in iOS 18. Apple has pushed an iOS 18 file to its maps backend labeled "CustomRouteCreation." While not much is revealed...
General iOS 17 Feature Orange Purple

Apple Releases Revised Versions of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 With Updated Build Number

Wednesday March 27, 2024 5:59 am PDT by
Apple on late Tuesday released revised versions of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 with an updated build number of 21E237, according to MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. The updates previously had a build number of 21E236. The revised updates are available for all iPhone and iPad models that are compatible with iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, but they can only be installed via the Finder app on macOS...
applephilschiller

Apple's Phil Schiller Works 80 Hours a Week Overseeing App Store

Wednesday March 27, 2024 2:03 pm PDT by
With the App Store and app ecosystem undergoing major changes in the European Union, The Wall Street Journal today shared a profile on App Store chief Phil Schiller, who is responsible for the App Store. Though Schiller transitioned from marketing chief to "Apple Fellow" in 2020 to take a step back from Apple and spend more time on personal projects and friends, he is reportedly working...