Why on earth did my lap top all the sudden start saving my photos to a win zip? Before I used to "select all" on a group of photos then hit the download button the cloud with a down arrow, and they would all save in my download folder individually. Well for some unknown reason all the sudden today they are grouping my photos in a winzip file when I select all. I'm getting very frustrated
Windows, Windows 6
This really makes quite a bit more work for downloading and using photos from iCloud for windows (to access photos from my iPhone).
Before:
Now:
Files download in a .zip file.
The .zip file creates a subfolder as you extract the files.
Numerous additional steps.
Yes, I'm asking why, too. Apple is known for making things easier--this is a step in the wrong direction.
This really makes quite a bit more work for downloading and using photos from iCloud for windows (to access photos from my iPhone).
Before:
Now:
Files download in a .zip file.
The .zip file creates a subfolder as you extract the files.
Numerous additional steps.
Yes, I'm asking why, too. Apple is known for making things easier--this is a step in the wrong direction.
I have this problem too and have today been told by apple that it is a change in order to speed up the download process. I argued that it may well speed up the download process but we know have to go through a 6 step process just to get to the images in their raw state. 6 additional steps to view them how I did two weeks ago!
She advised I send feedback so, that if enough people did, it may get reversed but for now it is doing what it is supposed to do.
Please provide apple feedback and tell them you are unhappy.
I have just added feedback - it is riduculous and so frustrating!! I am going to move away from iphone and just hope another brand will be easier to access photos - I til 279 photos today at a work event and Winzip will not download in a format that I can open - it is a joke - I feel they are MY photos and Apple is deliberately interfering in me accessing them - really frustrating
my issue is that when I try to even open the zip files I get an error saying file can't be opened every time
Suggestion: Buy some storage just long enough to do what you want to do. I think you can buy it (monthly?) and then cancel.
A side note: I learned that Live Photos take up a huge amount of storage. They are just sort of a "cool factor," IMO, and not really a very useful feature. You can Live Photos off.
I appreciate your answer, and certainly you are seeing this the way I have--that it creates several extra steps just to get to the image files. I will send my feedback--maybe yours along with it. I think this is a real step backwards.
Related: As to download speeds, are you aware that "Live photos" are much larger files than not-Live photos? IMO, the Live photo is sort of a gimmick--cool in a way, but usually not very useful and not worth the big leap in file size. Practically as soon as I started using Live photos--I started getting "storage full" messages. You can turn Live photos off.
They are doing this so you have to buy more storage. I am so ****** right now because I am out of storage and I wanted to transfer my photos to google photos. I can't because of the ZIP! can't even open it or drag my photo's or anything! How the heck can I do this now!
At least you can download the individual photos. iCloud gives me a zip folder with a PART file, which means I have to take even more steps to access the photos. The ideal would be to be able to simply transfer the images from my Xr to my PC, like I used to be able to do with my 6 Plus. Is that no longer possible? Is this Apple's way to force us to use iCloud? Grrrr...
We are in July now and still this is an issue. What is more I find I am locked out from unzipping these icloud files whereas, say, music downloads from other places unzip fine.
Hopeless - I think I shall have to go back to Onedrive for photo storage because that downloads seamlessly without even having to ask.
I agree! So much additional work. I hate it! The unzipped files won't reveal the image if I view them as large icons. So when I try to select them a few at a time and transfer them to the folder, it literally takes all day to transfer. This may be a better download time for Apple but it's not better for us!
Maybe it’s my OCD but I think it’s great! Now you select the photos you want and they are automatically grouped into one .zip file, that creates a folder that you label according to the contents. Streamline!
I was just on the phone with Apple support and they told me this was something my Windows OS was doing and that if I was on an apple I wouldn't have the zip file issue. She said that Apple is not making zip files for downloads. But by these comments it seems like this issue is true on Macs as well?
I also notice that the zip files sometimes contain duplicates of other zip files (if you download more than one day at a time). So tedious and nuts.
I’ve also just been introduced to the joys of downloading iCloud photos onto windows. I have windows 10, so unzipping the file is easy, but my issue is I’m selecting 1000 photos at a time, but each unzipped file contains around 980-985. So I’m going to have to go searching through to find out which ones are missing, unless anyone knows that a particular type of file doesn’t download, or at least not compress? Can anyone help?
This is so frustrating and does not make any sense to download the photos from icloud in a zip folder which takes an hour to convert them to a normal photos JPG file that I can use anywhere if I need to. Please change it to normal format for the photos and not a zip folder!
I have this problem too. Some photos I click on to download from icloud will save as a jpg file to my folder of choice and some will save as a winzip file. Very frustrating.
iCloud photos are going to a win zip file?
