Android's Tight Integration with Google Photos Makes it Hard to Replace

Rajesh, an experienced Android writer and reviewer, recently left Google Photos for Immich, but ultimately had to return due to the deep integration of Google Photos with Android.

With over 75 Android phone reviews under his belt, Rajesh has a unique perspective on how Android works and compares to iOS. He's been writing for Android Police since 2021 and has also contributed to other publications like Neowin and MySmartPrice.

Rajesh had been using Google Photos for years, backing up decades of photos and videos to its servers. However, as his library grew, he wanted more control over it and decided to switch to Immich.

Although initially happy with the switch, Rajesh soon realized that leaving Google Photos made his photo library harder to use. Android's Photo Picker, which provides a unified view of all photos stored locally and in the cloud, no longer worked as expected.

Rajesh also missed the integration with other services like Gemini and Messages, which allowed him to easily access his photos and videos without opening the Google Photos app.