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Getting your photos onto your phone, tablet and TV

Step-by-step help to download your scans, put them into Google Photos or Apple Photos, watch them on the TV, share them with the family and keep them safe. Take it one step at a time. Nothing here can harm your photos.

Where to startDownloadGoogle PhotosApple PhotosComputer onlyOn the TVShare with familyFinding peopleDates & captionsKeep them safeOrganising & naming
Before you start

Which way is best for you?

Pick the line that matches what you use most. You can always do more than one.

  1. Android phone or tablet (Samsung, Google Pixel, Motorola and most others): use Google Photos. It's usually already on your phone.
  2. iPhone, iPad or Mac: use Apple Photos. Google Photos also works on Apple devices if your family uses it.
  3. Only a Windows computer: keep the folder on your computer, and see Computer only.
  4. No smartphone or computer: ask us for a USB stick. Most TVs can show the photos straight from it, see On the TV.
TipIf a family member is good with phones, sit down with them and go through this page together. It usually takes less than an hour.
Step 1

Download your scans

When you've paid, we send you a link to your own private download page. You can look through every photo there, then download them all as one zipped folder. A zipped folder is just a way of sending lots of files together.

  1. Check you have space. A large order can be several gigabytes. On an iPhone or iPad, look in Settings, General, iPhone (or iPad) Storage. On Android, look in Settings, Storage.
  2. Use Wi-Fi, not mobile data, and keep the phone or tablet plugged in while it downloads.
  3. On a Windows computer: click the download button. The zipped folder goes into your Downloads folder. Right-click it, choose "Extract All", then "Extract". A normal folder of photos appears next to it.
  4. On a Mac: click the download button, open Downloads and double-click the zipped folder. It opens into a normal folder.
  5. On an iPhone or iPad: tap the download button, then tap Download. Open the Files app, tap Browse, then Downloads. Tap the zipped folder once and it opens into a normal folder.
  6. On an Android phone or tablet: tap the download button. Open the Files app (sometimes called "My Files"), go to Downloads, tap the zipped folder, then tap "Extract".
  7. Move the folder somewhere sensible, such as Pictures on a computer, so it doesn't get lost among other downloads.
TipYour download page stays open for 60 days, and we'll remind you before it closes. Download them as soon as you can, then come back to the rest of this guide at your own pace.
Step 2

Put them into Google Photos

Google Photos works on every phone, tablet and computer. Your photos are kept safely online, so they're still there if you lose or change your phone. Every Google account comes with 15GB of free storage, shared with Gmail and Google Drive. You can buy more for a small monthly fee if you need it.

  1. Easiest way, on a computer: go to photos.google.com and sign in with your Google (Gmail) account. Click "Upload", choose "Computer", open your folder of scans, select all the photos (Ctrl+A on Windows, Cmd+A on a Mac) and click "Open". You can also drag the whole folder onto the page.
  2. On an Android phone or tablet: open Google Photos and tap "Collections" (called "Library" on older versions). Under "On this device", find the folder of scans and turn on "Backup" for it.
  3. On an iPhone or iPad: first save the scans into your Photos app (see Apple Photos). Then install the Google Photos app, sign in and turn on Backup. It copies everything in your Photos app, scans included.
  4. Choose the right quality. In Google Photos settings, under Backup, choose "Original quality" so your scans aren't made smaller. "Storage saver" saves space but reduces the detail you paid for.
  5. Wait for it to finish. A big order can take a few hours. You can carry on using your phone or computer, and it carries on where it left off if it's interrupted.
Step 2

Put them into Apple Photos

On an iPhone, iPad or Mac, the Photos app keeps everything in one place. With iCloud Photos turned on, your scans appear on all your Apple devices and are kept safely online. Apple gives you 5GB of iCloud storage free. Most people with a large order will need a little more, which you can buy in Settings.

  1. On a Mac: open Photos, choose File, then Import. Select your folder of scans and click "Import All New Items".
  2. On an iPhone or iPad: open the Files app and go into your folder of scans. Tap the three dots (or "Select") at the top, tap Select All, then tap the Share button (the square with an arrow) and choose "Save Images". For very large orders, do it in batches of a few hundred.
  3. From a Windows computer: go to icloud.com/photos, sign in with your Apple ID, then click the upload button (a cloud with an arrow) and choose your photos. They then appear on your iPhone and iPad.
  4. Turn on iCloud Photos so they reach all your Apple devices: on an iPhone or iPad, open Settings, tap your name, then iCloud, then Photos, and switch on "Sync this iPhone" (or iPad).
TipOnce your scans are safely in Photos and backed up, you can delete the zipped folder from Files to free up space. Keep the photos themselves.
Computer only

Keeping them on a Windows computer

If you mostly use a computer, your scans can live there as an ordinary folder.

  1. Put the folder in Pictures. Open File Explorer, drag your folder of scans into Pictures.
  2. Look through them with the Photos app that comes with Windows. Double-click any photo, then use the arrow keys to go through them.
  3. Back them up. If you have OneDrive (it comes with Windows), your Pictures folder may already be backed up. Check by clicking the cloud icon at the bottom right of the screen. Otherwise copy the folder to a USB stick or external drive as well.
Watch them together

Seeing your photos on the TV

Old family photos look wonderful on a big screen, and it's the easiest way to enjoy them with the whole family.

  1. From a USB stick: plug the stick into the USB socket on the side or back of the TV. Choose USB (or "Media") on the TV menu, open the folder and press play for a slideshow. Most TVs from the last 10 years can do this.
  2. From Google Photos: on a Google TV, Chromecast or Android TV, open Google Photos on the TV, or tap the cast button in the Google Photos app on your phone to show photos on the TV.
  3. From an iPhone or iPad: with an Apple TV or an AirPlay-compatible TV, open a photo, tap the Share button and choose AirPlay.
Share

Sharing with the family

Everyone in the family can have their own copy, wherever they live.

  1. Send them the download link while your page is open. Anyone with the link can view and download the photos.
  2. Google Photos shared album: make an album (tap "+", then Album), add the photos, tap Share and send the link by WhatsApp, text or email. Family can add their own photos and comments too.
  3. Apple shared album: select the photos, tap Share, then "Add to Shared Album", and invite family by name, number or email.
  4. On WhatsApp: for a few favourites, send them as normal. For full quality, attach them as a "Document" rather than as a photo, as WhatsApp makes photos smaller.
Optional

Putting the right dates on

Scanned photos carry the date they were scanned, not the date they were taken. So your 1970s photos all appear under this year. Fixing the date puts them in the right place on your timeline.

  1. Google Photos on a computer: select the photos (tick the circle on each one, or hold Shift to select a run). Click the three dots at the top right and choose "Edit date & time". Type the date and save.
  2. Google Photos on a phone: open a photo, swipe up, then tap the pencil next to the date.
  3. Apple Photos on a Mac: select the photos, click Image at the top, then "Adjust Date and Time".
  4. Apple Photos on an iPhone or iPad: select the photos, tap the three dots, then "Adjust Date & Time".
  5. Add a caption, such as "Christmas 1984, at Grandma's", in the photo's info panel (swipe up on a phone). Captions can be searched in both apps.
TipThe right year is enough, so don't worry about exact days. If you tell us the dates and places when you order, we put them in your file names for free, for example ‘1974 - Kew Gardens - 012’. See Organising & naming.
Important

Keep them safe

Your download page works for 60 days, and we'll remind you before it closes. After that your files are deleted from our system, so please make sure you have your own copies.

  1. Keep two copies in two places. For example, one in Google Photos or iCloud, and one on a computer, USB stick or external drive.
  2. Give family their own copies, so the photos survive even if one copy is lost.
  3. Check once a year that your USB stick or drive still opens. They don't last forever.
  4. Keep your originals somewhere cool, dry and dark, away from lofts, garages and sunny windows.