The iCloud service has been available for nearly 12 years, and it has undergone great developments until it became a comprehensive platform for storing a wide range of different data, including basic documents, photos, videos, and more, but in its infancy it did not offer the same wide capabilities that it provides now, as it was a concept Cloud storage at the time was very limited, and the service provided was called iCloud Photo Stream, so why did Apple keep it with the developments of iCloud Cloud over these years, and why would you close it now?
There was a time when iCloud didn't provide any online storage for your photo library. And when iCloud was launched for the first time with the iOS 5 update in 2011, the only available feature was iCloud Photo Stream, and this feature worked as a temporary cloud storage option intended only for transferring photos from an iPhone to a Mac or computer. In other words, it wasn't a long-term storage solution for your entire photo collection.
iCloud Photo Stream was a unique solution introduced by Apple that allowed users to store up to 1000 photos for 30 days. The purpose of this caching was to give users enough time to retrieve photos using either Aperture or iPhoto, which were Apple's photo management apps at the time. Additionally, users had the option to manually download photos from these apps to a Windows PC if they preferred.
But there was a problem with iCloud Photo Stream, it could only transfer photos but not videos. To transfer videos, you had to connect your iPhone to your Mac or use a different cloud service like Dropbox. In addition, iCloud Photo Stream can only transfer photos when your device is connected to Wi-Fi.
The end of iCloud Photo Stream
It is not known exactly how many people are still using Photo Stream. However, Apple made a decision to stop the service, as it considers that the number of users is insufficient to justify its continuation. And Apple announced that it will close the Photo Stream service on July 26, 2023, through a notice posted on a support page about iCloud Photos and My Photo Stream.
For those who still rely on Photo Stream, shutting down the service isn't expected to have a significant impact, as Photo Stream is not intended for permanent storage of photos. To avoid any potential issues, Apple introduced a transition plan to ensure that all content from Users' Photo Streams is erased before the shutdown takes effect.
Since Photo Stream only stores photos for 30 days, Apple will stop accepting new uploads on June 26. This means that by this time the Photo Stream will be disconnected, and all existing photos will be gone, and they will be removed anyway.
Note, when photos are added to iCloud Photo Stream, they are not automatically deleted from the user's device. This means that the original copies of the photos will remain stored on the iPhone or iPad where they were originally taken, unless the owner chooses to delete them manually.
Naturally, Apple promotes iCloud Photo Library as an ideal solution for individuals who want seamless syncing of their photos across their Apple devices.
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