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Google+ Photos now lets you go back and re-edit pics you already edited
Google+ Photos already saves originals of your edited photos, in case you ever regret some of the more Warholish tweaks you made. Now, Google is letting you go back and edit your edits (editception!), rather than making you start from scratch with the original. So if you like all the filters you previously added, but just wanna crop the shot more tightly, you can do that without having to redo the whole thing. The catch is that this feature only works on Chrome, according to a post from Google employee John Nack, which means Android and iOS users are out of luck for now. Additionally, the company is introducing a feature called Auto Awesome Effects (yep) that automatically applies filters to your photos, videos and GIFs as you upload them. As with everything else, though, these effects are reversible; you can undo them if you don't like the ones Google picked out. Look for both features to start rolling out today, in case you have time for a little image-play.
Your Chromebook now sends photos to Google+ in the background
To date, Chrome OS has only backed up photos to the cloud as long as you left the Google+ Photos app open; that's a hassle on the frequently limited screen real estate of a Chromebook. You won't have that headache if you grab the updated Photos app, however. The new version automatically uploads snapshots from your SD card in the background, even if the app is closed; you can move on to email knowing that all those vacation pictures will be safe. It's a simple addition, but it should make a big difference if you're planning to go on photo safaris this summer.
Google makes your photos even Awesome(r) with new Android GIF and collage tools
It's great that Google+ can now automatically make photo albums, but if animated GIFs and collages are more your jam, then this news will sound loads better. Google+ Photos for Android just got updated with a bunch of new features, including two more Auto Awesome tools that you can use to manually create animated images and collages of any pictures in your album. Unlike the social networks' old GIF maker, the new features let you choose the photos you want to include instead of automatically grouping related shots. In case you've already got latest G+ app update, just click the new plus (+) option to find these tools and to flood your friends with GIFs of your beloved pet.
Google+ Photos app now available for all Chromebooks, no longer limited to the Pixel
Aside from the super high-res display, the Pixel has also had something else other Chromebooks didn't: the Google+ Photos app. Starting today, however, Google's changing that and bringing the application to the rest of the Chromebook family, making it accessible outside of its sleek, pixel-packed laptop for the first time. The Google+ Photos app, which is available in 52 languages, remains unchanged otherwise, and users can download it now via the Chrome Web Store.
Chromebook Pixel gets new Google+ Photos app for easier backups, sharing
It may not exactly be enough to make the high-end price tag any more palatable, but Chromebook Pixel owners now have another small exclusive to call their own. Google has just released a new Google+ Photos app for the device, which promises to make photo backups and sharing a bit easier. Namely, it'll automatically upload all your new photos to Google+ when you insert an SD card, from where you can then chose which you'd like to make public. No word on when the app will hit other non-Pixel Chromebooks, but Google says they are currently working on that.
Google uses computer vision and machine learning to index your photos
Tags are so 2008. Google doesn't want you to waste time tagging your photos, except for the people in them. The web giant wants to be able to recognize more abstract concepts like "sunset" or "beach" automatically and attach that metadata without further input. In yet another post-I/O update, Google+ photos now uses computer vision and machine learning to identify objects and settings in your uploaded snapshots. You can simply search for "my photos of trees" or "Tim's photos of bikes" and get surprisingly accurate results, with nary a manually added tag in sight. You can perform the searches in Google+, obviously, but you can also execute your query from the standard Google search page. It's pretty neat, but sadly Mountain View seems to have forgotten what cats look like.
Google combines Drive, Gmail and Google+ Photo storage into a common 15GB pool
Google's efforts to streamline aren't limited to some spring cleaning and more spartan interfaces. Today the company is breaking down the artificial walls between the pools of online storage provided for Gmail, Drive and Google+ Photos. Instead of 10GB for all your messages and attachments, alongside a separate 5GB repository for your photos and documents, now all three sites share a common 15GB slice on Google's servers. So, if you happen to be a little photo crazy, but are nowhere near the limit on your Gmail account, you no longer need to rely on workarounds like archiving images as attachments. This also means that storage upgrades for Gmail no longer top out at 25GB. There's also a handy new visualization that shows how much of your available storage you're using and breaks it down by service for finer-grained tracking. Update: If you're a Google Apps customer your available cloud storage will also be unified, leaving you with 30GB shared between all three services.
Google+ Photos app for Chromebooks revealed in more detail, thanks to new screenshots
Chances are, you've been gawking at that gorgeous new Pixel Chromebook, but aren't planning on, you know, buying it. No matter. For those of you who enjoy software porn, we've got a few more shots of the Pixel's forthcoming Photos application, which will eventually make its way to other Chromebooks, too. A developer on Google+ named François Beaufort has uploaded a series of screenshots, giving us a more detailed look -- good news since we only had three screens to show you when the software was first announced. Included in Beaufort's gallery is the settings page, which confirms that automatic photo uploads from SD cards are actually optional. The one thing you won't see in those pics? A full illustration of the intelligent photo selector, which is supposedly smart enough to weed out your blurry and poorly exposed shots. Hopefully all you Pixel owners out there will see for yourselves soon enough.
