Low photo resolution od iCloud

Same issue here. I believe iCloud for windows began downloading low resolution files after I upgraded from an iPhone 8 to an iPhone 12, though this might be a coincident. Hope this is a bug that gets fixed soon, I can imagine a lot of people being affected by this without even noticing right away.

Hello Camillii,

We understand the resolution of your photos are not the same as what is showing in iCloud on your PC. We'd love to help. When using iCloud Photos on your iPhone it automatically uploads the photos and videos you take and stores them in their original format at full resolution. More info can be found here: Use iCloud Photos on iPhone. Can you tell us what resolution it shows on the PC?

Enjoy your day!

 Primalair, do you mean you installed the old iCloud for Windows version? If so, that may mean it is the Windows iCloud app that is the problem, instead of either the iPhone or Apple's cloud. Good information, thanks!

I can confirm this is the case. Using the automatic syncing in the iCloud for Windows app, all the photos are reduced in resolution. You can download them manually through iCloud Photos in the web browser (by long pressing the download button and selecting Unmodified Original) and get the proper resolution. Is this a bug or is it happening by design? Very bad, as many people relying on this and haven't bothered to check the pixel size might not be aware the quality of their photos and videos are being compromised on the downloaded version (they are still fine in the cloud).

The photos and videos are stored in the cloud in original quality, which is good, but the iCloud For Windows app's automatic downloads are reducing the quality without warning. Videos shot at 1920 x 1080 are downloaded on the PC at 1280 x 720 and photos taken on an iPhone 12 are being reduced to 1536 x 2048, when they should be 3024 x 4032. Is this a 'feature' or a bug?

This basically happens on my PC almost any time I change anything with iCloud or get a new phone (which I did a couple of weeks ago). It's horrible. Eventually I seem to change enough things to magically get it fixed, but I can never figure out what it is.

On forums, you have to scroll through of generic answers from people who don't read your question, so let's get that out of the way:

1) I don't need a link on how to set up iCloud.

2) I don't want to have to click on the cloud icon on the iCloud website photo page, I want all the photos to download full-res to my PC automatically. That's the purpose of the iCloud client.

3) Changing Settings > Photos > Transfer to Mac or PC does not always work.

The problem is that the functionality does not always work. I suspect it has to do with some setting that gets out of whack because of changing phones, but can never figure out what it is.

But basically, this is a bad user experience because the download resolution should be controlled by the client on the PC/Mac, not the phone. The phone is uploading full-res, so that *should* have nothing to do with it.

If I find a solution and I can find this thread again, I will post it.

Can confirm this is still happening as of December 28th. iPhone 12 Pro - sourced photos are being downloaded in a compressed file size by the Windows iCloud sync client (from Microsoft Store) version 11.6.32.0. It's tragic, ruining the backup flow. What a nasty bug :-/

I've tried it with both the older iCloud for Windows and the current version and it was the same both ways. Both versions download the 'optimized' version instead of the full original quality. The only way I get full resolution is to download from the iCloud.com/Photos manually.

Well, what I discovered is that you at least get the full resolution. I at least got 12MP instead of 3MP got before. But yes, a proraw file is 3MB what is for sure not the original. :( Does someone know if it still works on Macs?

This is happening to me on iPhone 12 Mini. Old 6s connected to the same Apple ID is still working as it was. Images coming from iCloud to Windows are full resolution, but those taken by iPhone 12 are coming at a reduced resolution, with some random exceptions. The only way to get the originals is to download via web interface straight from iCloud. Also this is happening with camera set to max compatibility. If I switch to efficiency setup, all images are coming at a reduced resolution, even downloaded manually from web interface.

So do I. The old version of iCloud for Windows 7.19.0.10 (not from Windows 10 store ) also get the 2048 x 1536.

At least by the normal photos.

And the photos that are shooted in portrait mode I get two full size ones - one normal, another with blurred background.

Iphone 12 mini, iOS 14.4

Well, I had the same issue with iPhone 12Pro, never before on 8 Plus. I notices under Settings -> Camera -> Formats it's checked "High Efficiency". Then, on Settings -> Photos -> Transfer to Mac or PC I personaly marked "Keep Originals" when setting up my new iPhone. And it uploaded the original 'high efficient' pic in HEIF format. After changing this option to "Automatic" the photos are shown as .JPG and in 4032x3024 reolution. This worked for me.

Why was this marked as "solved"? There is still no solution for this issue.