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OPINION: I’ve been a subscriber to Google One for round three years, and I’ve been pleased with the subscription service throughout that point. I not solely acquired extra storage for my photographs, movies and different recordsdata, however a bunch of different advantages to sweeten the deal.
The issue? Google is kind of quickly lowering these options and, with them, the final enchantment of Google One. The truth is, it has now reached the purpose the place I’m contemplating cancelling my subscription altogether.
After I first subscribed, the Google One subscription consisted of the core cloud storage improve – 200GB, in my case – plus extra extras. These are available in varied kinds, from the much less useful (like sharing my treasured storage with family and friends) to significantly extra precious advantages like Google Retailer reductions, all for the comparatively small asking worth of £2.49 per thirty days.
That listing of extras included Google VPN, offering safe web entry and not using a devoted VPN subscription.
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Google’s VPN is slightly fundamental in contrast the very best VPNs like ExpressVPN and Nord VPN, missing the power to pick out your server location and having the ability to apply it to quite a lot of gadgets, as an alternative locked to iPhone, iPad, Home windows and Mac, nevertheless it was an enormous profit nonetheless.
I’m not precisely an avid consumer of VPNs, admittedly out of pure laziness, nevertheless it did come in useful on the uncommon event that I’d connect with open, public Wi-Fi.
Properly, evidently I received’t have that possibility quickly, as Google has confirmed it’s winding down its VPN service, citing a scarcity of curiosity from shoppers, with no substitute in place for Google One subscribers. There’s no phrase but on when it’ll stop to exist, nevertheless it must be someday within the subsequent couple of months.
That will’ve been a large enough Google One tablet to swallow, however Google hasn’t stopped there. Nope. Within the early hours of Monday morning, I acquired one other e mail from Google about different adjustments to Google One that may take impact on 15 Might 2024 – beneath a month from now.
Greater than the lack of VPN entry
And, simply my luck, these adjustments have an effect on the one different key function of Google One which I exploit frequently – enhancing options within the Google Pictures app.
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Extra particularly, this pertains to Magic Eraser, Portrait Gentle, Color Focus and Sky enhancing options. These options, up till now, have been completely accessible for Google Pixel customers and Google One subscribers.
Even when Magic Eraser doesn’t ship the very best outcomes round, it was a helpful function that I’d typically use to take away annoying distractions from my snaps. The Sky function was equally helpful for giving my photographs a sure look or really feel.
Don’t get me flawed, it’s nice to see Google opening its beforehand Pixel- and Google One-exclusive enhancing options to all customers of Google Pictures freed from cost, nevertheless it doesn’t precisely reward long-time Google One subscribers. It appears like a little bit of a slap within the face to not provide one thing else as a replacement.
So, by my rely, prior to now month, Google has eliminated two of essentially the most tempting causes to go for a Google One account as an alternative of different available, and cheaper, cloud storage providers like Dropbox and OneDrive.
The one factor preserving me tied to my Google One subscription, for now, is the prolonged cloud storage for my photographs and movies in Google Pictures.
I’ve acquired 10+ years of photographs and movies in Google’s cloud storage, and that’ll be a little bit of a headache to obtain and switch to a different cloud service – even when I do at the moment get free picture storage in Amazon Pictures with my Prime subscription. However, with Google One now providing much less worth than ever, I’ve by no means been fairly as tempted to make the transfer as I’m proper now.
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