With smartphone being accessible for almost everybody, it is common to take numerous photos to capture life every day. While the storage on the mobile devices is gradually shrinking, even Google Photos has canceled its free unlimited space. People are consequently frustrated with either to continue using Google Photos, or other photo management software. In fact, Synology Photos IS the private cloud application designed for either home or business users, who own large amount of photos and videos, and value data privacy. Synology Photos is highly efficient, cost-effective, and easy to manage!

A table to understand which photo management tool best suits you

What is the specific feature of Synology Photos that makes it more suitable for users than Google Photos? Let us look at the below differences:

Synology PhotosGoogle Photos
PrivacyBuild your own private data center through private cloud, and obtain 100% data ownership. Synology values users’ privacy and will not access users’ data.Public cloud is operated on cloud servers. This means the users’ data could be read and save, or even review your uploaded photos to improve the algorithm
PerformanceThe uploading performance is unlimited. Backup during your sleep is allowed upon set up, and over 20,000 photos can be backed up during nighttime. Handling large amount of photos will no longer be an issue. The browsing experience is more stable and enhanced by having the process run in the same network (LAN).Storing and accessing your photos on public cloud, the browsing experience is totally determined by your internet speed and budget.
CostOnly pay for one-time hardware upfront cost. There is no subscription fee and no distracting ads. Customized storage allocate based on users’ need is also allowed.Subscription service that costs over USD$100 per year.No customization is allowed and the storage is limited up to 2TB.
Smart AlbumCurrently, people, location, and tag albums are supported. More smart album is to be launched in 2023.People, location, event, pets and other smart albums are supported.
EditingSimple rotation function is available.More in-depth editing tool is available.
Management/searchFrom the users’ perspective, diverse viewing methods are provided. For example, users can choose to view chronologically or in file mode are available. In addition, powerful metadata filters, drill down by camera, lens, location, faces and more, in different usage scenario to accommodate professional needs. Only chronological view is available. Users generally search with their memory, which often cause frustration of not being able to find the photo they need.
Maintenance costMaintenance is done by users. However, the failure rate of NAS is very low. Even when problem occurs, a 3-5 years warranty is provided based on the model. A thorough online technical support is available on the official website.Maintenance is handled by Google, no additional maintenance is required from the users. However, when the third party service is affected due to inevitable event, which further leads to the service downtime or maintenance, users have no choice but to wait. All usage would be interrupt.
Large screen experienceSupported Apple TV and Android TV. Operation interface is easy and intuitive. Users from age 8 to 80 can get hands on easily.Only through Chromecast is available.

According to the graph, it can be concluded that Google Photo could be more suitable for users when there were less amount of photos to be stored and more editing functions were demanded when the affordability of the continuous subscription fee is not much of an issue. On the other hand, if the users commonly find the storage to be insufficient as large amount of photos need to be managed; or when the data to be stored is the important and sensitive business information, which makes privacy a priority for the photo management application, then Synology Photos will be the right choice.

Paying for Google Photos? Synology Photos gives you wings on NAS

Synology Photos not only allows full data ownership, the packages also fulfill diverse usage scenario. It can be run on computer web, mobile device, and TV application. Synology Photos will continue focusing on design and features, and bring the best solution for users to store their precious memories.


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