Storing all pic on icloud but removing them from my phone

xtremeled

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Oct 4, 2011
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I cant seem to find an answer to this . I have over 2k pics on my iPhone6 I also have them stored on iCloud. What I'd like to do is ONLY have them on the cloud and remove about 99% of them from my phone.I have read articles saying this is no problem but also, articles saying that you can but if you then download and remove it, it's removed across all devices. I just want to make some room on the phone and also remove pics that are old, but still wanted
 

kurpaige

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All you can do is set your iPhone to optimized storage and it'll move pics when it thinks you need space. Crazy right.
 

Tartarus

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Optimized Storage for iCloud Photo Library is only to reduce the size a photo takes up on your device. It doesn't remove it, but just leaves a thumbnail on your iPhone. Deleting it will delete it from all devices.

This is the only solution for you to follow. Unless you are willing to use third party apps store your photos in.
 

xtremeled

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Optimized Storage for iCloud Photo Library is only to reduce the size a photo takes up on your device. It doesn't remove it, but just leaves a thumbnail on your iPhone. Deleting it will delete it from all devices.

This is the only solution for you to follow. Unless you are willing to use third party apps store your photos in.

OK! I realize its an Apple site but, Thats the dumbest idea I've heard. If its stored in the cloud why in gods name do I need it on the phone as well. ARRRRRRG!!!
 

Tartarus

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Because it's not a backup service, it's merely mirroring your Camera Roll in realtime. And, God forbid, if you lose your phone or if it gets broken or something, the photos will not be lost because they are also in the cloud.
Also, this service allows you to manage the one and same Camera Roll on all your devices, if enabled.
 

Annie_M

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You might want to consider Google Photos. It's free and all you need is a gmail account and the Google Photos App. This would give you unlimited space, and your photos can be backed up to Google Photos automatically. Once you ensure that they have been, you can remove them off your phone. This helped me immensely!
 

Ledsteplin

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iCloud is a back up option. It backs up what is currently on your device. If you remove the photos from the device, then they are also removed from iCloud. If you want real storage where you can delete them from the phone, use a cloud based app like Dropbox or Box.
 

Quis89

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I use DropBox. It automatically uploads all pictures and videos I take. Then I can remove them from my iPhone. For what it sounds like you're wanting, it would probably be your best bet.
 

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