3 cool tricks that mean you'll never run out of storage again
No matter which phone I use, I always seem to
run out of storage. Updates from the Play Store, offline map data, huge
games, photos, music – you name it, it's on my phone taking up space. I
know I'm not alone, so I thought I'd create this guide on how to
end storage problems once and for all.
Besides making your phone slower, your storage being
full to the brim can also stop your phone updating apps and taking new
photos, among other things. Follow these steps and you'll never reach
that point again.
Running out of storage is never this cute. / © ANDROIDPIT
Music, apps, videos and photos are the biggest culprits for consuming your storage space. / © ANDROIDPIT
Fortunately, we can control all three of these. Take a
little time to work your way through unused apps, bloated caches and
unnecessary files, and delete what you don't need. Or use an app to do
the hard work for you. SD Maid automates a lot of the process and ES
File Explorer scours your Android file system and will prompt you to
clear out the remaining files from the apps you uninstall.
SD Maid - System Cleaning Tool
ES File Explorer File Manager
You won't want to just delete your user data, but you can move it to another device to free up some storage space.
For example, the DCIM, Music and Videos folders can be saved onto your
computer for safekeeping. To do this, connect your phone to your
computer with a USB cable and unlock your phone. Move the folders or
files you don't especially need on your phone to your computer. Don't
forget to check all folders – even your WhatsApp folder can be full of
forgetten saved images.
Even if your phone doesn't have a microSD card slot, you can still use microSD storage. / © ANDROIDPIT
Using a microSD card for additional additional storage space
is not seamless, but it will help save space in your phone's limited
internal storage. If your phone has a slot for a microSD card, you can
save photos or music to it, leaving the internal storage for apps or
essential files.
MicroSD card adapters such as the Leef Access can give you all the benefits of a MicroSD card. / © ANDROIDPIT
You can push some apps to external storage, but it's a
pretty hit and miss affair (after all, how will your Android do when
sync an app that's stored on an adapter in your pocket?). Storing music,
videos, photos and documents on a microSD card makes a lot of sense
though.
Depending on what you're willing to pay, you can have unlimited cloud storage. / © ANDROIDPIT
Photos
Google Play Music also lets you store your collections
online, although it's not so simple to upload music you've acquired
outside of Google's service. You can stream music via Spotify,
SoundCloud or iHeartRadio too, but playing back your tunes through these
apps will consume a lot data.
Google Play Music
If you want to upload your music collection to Google Play
Music to clear up some space on your phone, you'll need a companion app
or a Chrome extension for your PC. You can get the instructions for
uploading your library to Play music in the app itself by going to Music
> Add Music. You can then upload up to 50,000 tracks from your MP3
collection to retrieve via the Android app. You can make selected albums
playable offline by 'pinning' them.
A USB cable can be your saving grace when it comes to freeing up space on Android. / © ANDROIDPIT references:-https://www.androidpit.com/with-these-tricks-youll-never-run-out-of-storage-again
1. Spring clean your internal storage
Internal storage on a smartphone is mainly used up by three things:- App data
- Cached data (system cache, app cache)
- User data (music, photos, videos, etc)
SD Maid - System Cleaning Tool
ES File Explorer File Manager
You won't want to just delete your user data, but you can move it to another device to free up some storage space.
For example, the DCIM, Music and Videos folders can be saved onto your
computer for safekeeping. To do this, connect your phone to your
computer with a USB cable and unlock your phone. Move the folders or
files you don't especially need on your phone to your computer. Don't
forget to check all folders – even your WhatsApp folder can be full of
forgetten saved images.2. Reinvent the microSD card
Despite Google's efforts to limit the use of microSD expansion, expandable memory is just as popular as it has always been. And even if your phone doesn't have a microSD slot, you can still use microSD to get more storage space.
- Buy now: Leef Access microSD card reader from Amazon.com for US$12.99
- Buy now: Leef Access microSD card reader from Amazon.co.uk for £5.03
3. Try life in the cloud
If photos and music are the biggest memory hogs, simply kick them to the cloud. Google's new Photos app offers free unlimited storage for your photos for life, as long as they're 16 MP or lower. Photos will also let you store unlimited 1,080p video for free. There are plenty of other cloud backup options, Photos is just one option.
Google Play Music also lets you store your collections
online, although it's not so simple to upload music you've acquired
outside of Google's service. You can stream music via Spotify,
SoundCloud or iHeartRadio too, but playing back your tunes through these
apps will consume a lot data.Google Play Music
If you want to upload your music collection to Google Play
Music to clear up some space on your phone, you'll need a companion app
or a Chrome extension for your PC. You can get the instructions for
uploading your library to Play music in the app itself by going to Music
> Add Music. You can then upload up to 50,000 tracks from your MP3
collection to retrieve via the Android app. You can make selected albums
playable offline by 'pinning' them.Conclusion
With a few careful decisions about the cloud, off-device storage options and general spring cleaning, you can ensure you never run out of storage space again. If cloud storage is not for you, then consider deleting some apps, moving your photos and other files to your PC, or investing in a microSD adaptor.
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