iPhone out of storage space despite "Optimize iPhone Storage" enabled in Photos

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iPhone out of storage space despite "Optimize iPhone Storage" enabled in Photos

Contradicting this article claiming

... as long as you have enough space in iCloud, you can store as many photos and videos as you want.

my iPhone keeps complaining about low (or sometimes being completely out of) storage space. I've been fixing it by selectively offloading or removing apps & data, but the quote above seems be at odds with the 3Gb that Photos are taking on my device. The setting is definitely doing something, since the full size of my iCloud Photos is about 12Gb, but I'd think a 75% reduction is a very far cry from "as many photos and videos as you want".

With the setting enabled, the system is supposed to manage what photos on the device are replaced with thumbnails & their originals downloaded only on demand, but 3Gb seems an awful lot for a bunch of low resolution thumbnails & metadata. Am I missing something (e.g., maybe the setting needs to be applied separately to different types of media, or maybe another setting controls how aggressively the feature works), or is that how low it will go?

iPhone XS, iOS 13

Posted on Aug 13, 2020 2:50 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

ryane77

Community Specialist

Aug 17, 2020 1:04 PM in response to MarcinS

Hey MarcinS,

We appreciate the details surrounding your storage, and further explaining the issue with iCloud Photos. The amount of Photos storage that remains on your device can depend on many factors. For instance, if you have a large amount of videos, this would take more storage, even for the space-saving versions. Let's check to see if your photo library is updating, or possibly paused. To do that open the Photos app, choose the Photos tab, then scroll to the very bottom. What does it show below the amount of photos and videos stored?

For your overall storage, an update to 13.6.1 was recently released that helps address possible issues with storage. Which software version do you show in Settings > General > About? If it isn't 13.6.1 we encourage you to back up your iPhone, then update the software. Here's a great guide to follow for those steps, just in case: Update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch

We look forward to hearing back from you.

Cheers!

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Answer 2

chris_g1

Community Specialist

Aug 14, 2020 8:07 PM in response to MarcinS

Hey MarcinS,

Having available storage is important. We're happy to look into this with you. Let's begin with checking your storage to see what's taking up the most space. Tap Settings > General > iPhone Storage to check. Here are more details too: How to check the storage on your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch

If you scroll to the bottom of that area, do you see a higher than expected amount for System or Other? If so, follow these steps: Clear Other storage on your iPhone or iPad

The following may also be helpful in regard to iCloud Photos: Get help with iCloud Photos

Let us know how that goes.

Take care!

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Answer 3

MarcinS Author

Level 1

26 points

Aug 15, 2020 5:35 PM in response to chris_g1

Thanks for the reply, chris_g1. I know the iPhone Storage page well, as I've been spending quite some time on it lately. To answer your question, System & Other take up 7 & 11Gb, respectively--I don't know if that's normal or expected of an iPhone Xs 64Gb.

My original question was specifically around Photos, which is #2 biggest hog on the list with 3Gb used. Since my entire iCloud Photos is 12Gb, I find this 25% to be quite large with Optimize iPhone Storage turned on. If my iCloud Photos were 250Gb, the 25% would represent 63Gb--the entire storage of my iPhone. If the 3Gb is constant regardless of the size of originals in iCloud Photos, then the statement in the article I referenced before should be revised to say

... as long as you have enough space in iCloud and at least 3Gb on your iPhone, you can store as many photos and videos as you want.

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Answer 4

MarcinS Author

Level 1

26 points

Aug 17, 2020 3:34 PM in response to ryane77

Let's check to see if your photo library is updating, or possibly paused. To do that open the Photos app, choose the Photos tab, then scroll to the very bottom. What does it show below the amount of photos and videos stored?

It shows "Updated Just Now".

Which software version do you show in Settings > General > About?

I show 13.6--just started the upgrade to 13.6.1, will report back when it completes.

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Answer 5

MarcinS Author

Level 1

26 points

Aug 17, 2020 4:08 PM in response to MarcinS

[...] just started the upgrade to 13.6.1, will report back when it completes.

It just finished the upgrade & there is still some ongoing activity, but Other is already showing 9Gb, down from 11Gb (System takes up the same 7Gb as before). Is there any logical point in time to check on these again after things settle down?

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Answer 6

sterling r

Community Specialist

Aug 18, 2020 12:10 PM in response to MarcinS

MarcinS,

It's great you're already noticing a difference in your storage after updating. You'll want to use your device normally over the next day or so to see if you notice any improvement.

Let us know how it goes.

Take care!

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iPhone out of storage space despite "Optimize iPhone Storage" enabled in Photos

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