Google Photos locked folder to roll out to more Android phones

Google Photos' locked folder feature, which promises to keep personal photos out of your main roll of photos, is starting to roll out on non-pixel phones, according to Android Police. Google said in September that the feature would roll out to more Android phones "soon" and has reportedly started to appear on some Samsung and OnePlus devices, according to Android Central. Older Pixel devices that initially didn't have access to it are getting it now, too, based on our testing.

The feature allows you to choose specific photos or videos and put them in a biometric-locked passcode or folder, pulling them out of their main photo source and keeping them out of the cloud. It was introduced to Google's own phones (Pixel 3 onwards) in June, after being announced at Google's I / O presentation in May.

In its presentation, Google used the example of parents hiding images of a newly purchased puppy from their children. A valid use case for sure, although I suspect most people will probably use it for less healthy images, easing the anxiety of "what if they swipe too many images and see my butt?" Which can arise when unfiltered photos of people from a library are shown. (Surely a concern you can relate to.)

The feature should be available for phones running Android 6 or later, and I was able to access it on my Pixel 2 running Android 11 by going to Photos> Library> Utilities. Google also said that the feature would come to the iOS version of Google Photos early next year.

If you have the feature and want to use it, it is worth noting that the photos stored in the locked folder will not be backed up to the cloud and will be deleted if you uninstall Google Photos or erase your device without transferring them. You can read more on the Google Locked Folders support page.