Google One
 | |
Type of site | Cloud storage service |
|---|---|
| Owner | Google LLC |
| URL | one |
| Registration | Required |
| Users | 100 million+ (2024) |
| Launched | May 14, 2018[1] |
Google One is a subscription service developed by Google that offers expanded cloud storage and is intended for the consumer market. Google One paid plans offer cloud storage starting at 100 gigabytes, up to a maximum of 30 terabytes, an expansion from the free basic Google Account storage space of 15 GB, which is shared across Google Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos.[1]
Launched in May 2018, Google One replaced the paid services of Google Drive to emphasize that the program is used by multiple Google Services.[2] The program's raw storage is not accessible by users, but emails, files, and pictures can be added and removed through Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos. The various plans include other benefits.[3] The service has over 100 million subscribers as of February 2024[update].[4]
History
[edit]Google One was launched in May 2018. The 1 TB plan for Google Drive was upgraded to 2 TB, while the 2 TB plan's price was the same as Google Drive's 1 TB plan (US$9.99). 24/7 support was available with all Google One plans.[1] From May to August 2018, Google began upgrading Google Drive users in the United States to Google One. All Google users could get access to Google One in the U.S. free of charge, but without member benefits or upgraded storage.[5]
On October 29, 2020, Google added a VPN service for Google One users on a 2 TB plan or higher;[6] this was discontinued on June 20, 2024.[7][8]
In January 2023, the Google One app passed one billion downloads on Android.[9] In February 2023, the Magic Eraser editing feature in Google Photos previously exclusive to Pixel 6 and 7 owners was made available to all Google One users.[10] In March 2023, Google expanded access to the VPN service to all plans and added a dark web monitoring feature for most users.[11] On February 8, 2024, Google introduced the AI Premium plan which provides access to Gemini Advanced and Gemini in Gmail, Docs, Slides, Sheets, and Meet.[12]
Features
[edit]Every Google Account provides 15 GB of storage for Google Drive, Gmail and Google Photos. Google One increases the quota to 100 GB or more, depending on the plan, and provides additional functionality such as Google Photos editing, shareable with up to five other people. Non-subscribers can use Google One to back up data from Android or iOS devices, and clean up space in their Google Account with the storage manager.[13]
A paid plan provides:
- More storage space, depending upon the plan.
- Support from "Google experts" for Google services available 24/7 in the US over chat, email, and phone. Support options elsewhere vary.[1]
- Automatic phone backup on Android through the Google One app.
- Dark web monitoring which scans the dark web for the user's personal information.[11]
- Enhanced editing features such as Magic Eraser—which erases parts of an image and uses AI to fill in the erased section to look like the rest of the background[14]—portrait light, blur, and color pop become available on Google Photos.[10][15][16]—
- Ability for up to five additional family members to share a Google one subscription.[3]
- Up to 10% cashback on purchases from the Google Store for users in the 200 GB and 2 TB plans.
- Google Play credits and other benefits from Google services.
- Gemini Advanced, available only in the 2 TB AI Premium Plan.[12]
- The accounts of Google One subscribers display a modified avatar icon.
Storage
[edit]The storage managed by Google One is used by Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos. Price varies in different regions. Storage purchases renew automatically at the end of the subscription period. Users can upgrade their storage plan at any time.
Storage can be shared with up to 5 additional family members, with each person getting the default 15 GB. Files count towards the free default storage before counting towards shared storage. Many items do not take up any extra space: shared files or files in "Shared with me" only use up the owner's quota. Google Pixel phones up to the Pixel 5 allow users to back up an unlimited number of videos and photos that don't count towards the quota.[17][18]
When Google Photos was announced in 2015 free unlimited photo storage was promised. On June 1, 2021, Google removed unlimited storage from the "High quality" (renamed "Storage saver") and "Express quality" settings in Google Photos and Google Docs Editors file formats (except for Google Sites) stored in Google Drive. Users have a storage quota, although photos, videos and Docs Editors files uploaded before June 1 were not affected.[19]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Lardinois, Frederic (14 May 2018). "Say hello to Google One". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on 2018-12-03.
- ^ Lardinois, Frederic (14 May 2018). "Google One launches with cheaper cloud storage plans". The Verge. Archived from the original on 2018-10-10.
- ^ a b "Google One - More storage and extra benefits from Google". one.google.com. Archived from the original on 2018-11-27. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- ^ Davis, Wes (2024-02-10). "Google One hits 100 million subscribers". The Verge. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
- ^ "Google One is now open to all". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on 2018-11-27. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- ^ Lopez, Napier (October 30, 2020). "Google launches VPN service so Google One users can browse more privately". Plugged | The Next Web.
- ^ Li, Abner (2024-04-11). "Google One VPN will be discontinued, Pixel VPN remains with upgrade coming". 9to5Google. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
- ^ "Google to shut down Google One VPN on June 20 - here are some alternatives". ZDNET. Retrieved 2024-05-19.
- ^ Maddison, Lewis (2023-01-10). "Google One hits a billion downloads". TechRadar. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
- ^ a b Li, Abner (2023-02-24). "9to5Google Log Out: Google One has a promising future". 9to5Google. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
- ^ a b Clark, Mitchell (2023-03-08). "Google's One plans are getting expanded VPN access and dark web monitoring". The Verge. Retrieved 2023-03-10.
- ^ a b Ortiz, Sabrina (2024-02-08). "You can try Google's new 'AI Premium Plan' for free. Here's how (and why you'll want to)". ZDNET. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
- ^ "Secure storage and AI from Google - section Frequently Asked Questions". Google One. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
- ^ "Edit photos with AI: Magic Editor, Magic Eraser and Unblur". Google Photos. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
- ^ "A new video editor, plus enhanced editing features". Google. 2021-02-11. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ "Additional editing features for Google One members - now on iOS - Google Photos Community". support.google.com. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ^ "How your existing storage works with Google One - Google One Help". support.google.com. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- ^ "Choose the upload size of your photos and videos - Computer - Google Photos Help". support.google.com. Archived from the original on 2018-11-19. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- ^ Haselton, Todd (11 November 2020). "Google just ended unlimited free storage for photos, but still gives you more than Apple". CNBC.
