How to free storage space on an Android smartphone

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Android full memory: freeing storage space on a mobile

Storage of your smartphone or Android tablet arrives at saturation ? Clean up space to recover space and be able to store applications, updates, photos, videos and personal files again !

Smartphones are marketed today with a storage capacity of 64 GB (for the less well lotis), between 128 or 256 GB for the most part, even 512 GB or 1 TO for high -end models. The oldest must still be satisfied with 32 GB (and sometimes less), which seriously limits their use, whether it is to install applications or keep files, including photos and videos. Anyway, except to juggle memory cards (in microSD format) for devices that accept them, the storage space is always limited, because “finished” in essence.

Manufacturers justify these limitations by the massive use of online storage (in the cloud). Like Google, including the current high -end smartphone, the Pixel 6 Pro (almost 900 euros all the same …), only embarks 128 GB of space. What is the point of providing a greater storage capacity while Google Photos is ready to accommodate all your shots and all your films ? Certainly, but the online service of the American is limited to 15 GB and the storage rules, previously unlimited, have changed since last year as we explain in our practical sheet.

Also, to avoid ending up with the famous messages “impossible for lack of space available” when you use your smartphone, you should make a touch of cleaning, and regularly, preferably. Fortunately, the vast majority of Android smartphones have a tool to delete unnecessary items such as failed photos or videos, but also cache files that your mobile collects and stores on a daily basis. And if no tools are present to do this work, you can rely on free applications to start with Google queues. It is also on this app that the version of Android animates the pixel of the American giant is resting to manage the storage space.

How to estimate storage space used on an Android device ?

It is first necessary to draw up an inventory of the storage space on your device. You can thus visualize which files of files occupy a little too much space and thus carry out a cleaning.

► Access the smartphone settings. Look for the section Storage and press it.

► On Samsung mobiles, choose Battery and device maintenance then press Storage.

► Immediately display an inventory of the storage space of your smartphone or tablet. You can thus see the place occupied by apps, photos, videos, audio files (music but also vocal memos and audio recordings you have made, etc.) as well as the basket. There is a good chance that the category Applications or the largest closely followed by the System (on which you have no way to act) and the files Pictures And Videos. You can see at a glance which category surely deserves a small cleaning to regain a little space.

How to delete unnecessary elements on an Android device ?

Depending on the brands and models of smartphones, the cleaning operation may be more or less simple. Some immediately have a button Release Or To clean and perform an automatic sorting of what can be deleted when others let you spot and choose yourself what should be eliminated. Example here with a Honor 10 Lite under Android 10, a Google Pixel 6 Pro and a Samsung Galaxy Note 10+, both on Android 12.

► If your mobile has a button To clean Like this Honor, press on it.

► The device then offers elements that you can delete and indicates the space that you can recover. Press the name of a category to see what it contains.

► Here, unwanted files (system cover and elements in internal memory) can be eliminated the closed eyes.

► You can also choose a category to clean like images, videos, audio files, etc. Note the presence of the category Large files. There are files that take up a lot of space such as videos for example are listed there. It may be wise to start with this category to gain a lot of space at once.

► On Pixel smartphones, the Files app is maneuvering to clean up on your device. Installed by default, this tool is in fact the Google file manager for Android. You can also get it for free and use it even if you do not have a pixel smartphone. Files has the advantage of displaying a clear interface and above all, do not water any advertising unlike the number of cleaning apps available on the Play Store.

► In the File app, press the menu Release.

► After a quick analysis, the app has cleaning suggestions. Push the button Delete xxx mo section Unwanted files. These are generally unnecessary temporary files that accumulate.

► Validate by pressing To erase.

► Files then offers to take care of the large files present on the mobile. Push the button Select files.

► The app lists the big files found and presents the preview vignettes. Select each file to be eliminated by checking the corresponding box. When your choice is made, press Place x files in the basket at the bottom of the screen. At this point, your files have not yet been deleted. They will be kept for 30 days.

► You can proceed in the same way for other categories: Multimedia Recording content (audio recordings), downloaded files and, above all, the files saved in the Google Photos app and which are already saved in Google Photos in line.

► The Samsung app operates on the same principle as files. It allows, category by category, to delete the elements that you deem useless and which occupy space. Scroll down the contents down. You will find two categories to analyze in priority: Duplicated files And Large files.

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How to free storage space on an Android smartphone ?

Your Android phone is saturated ? Here’s how to save space and continue using your smartphone.

Yann Daoulas – Modified on 06/30/2020 at 4:34 p.m

“Insufficient storage space”: four very annoying words when you want to download a new application, a video or simply take some photos with your smartphone. To continue taking advantage of your phone in the best conditions, it is necessary freeze. Here are the solutions to scrape the few precious gigabytes that you are missing on your Android smartphone.

Uninstall applications that clutter your storage space

If the internal memory of your smartphone is saturated, it may first be, that it welcomes too many applications. A small cleaning in the apps that you no longer use should allow you to free up space on your phone. To do this, just go to the Settings menu of your Android smartphone, then in the Applications section. You will find all the apps installed, and perhaps some of which you no longer have the usefulness. Select them unwanted applications then press “uninstall”: this will certainly allow you to have more storage available.

Note that certain pre-installed applications cannot be deleted, but simply deactivated, which will however make it possible to erase all their updates, and gain a little storage space.

Empty the covers of applications to earn more space

Chrome, Firefox, Facebook, Twitter and many other applications store cache data. This is a short -term memory that prevents the app to download a number of information each time it is used. Emptying this cover at regular intervals will free up space on the internal memory of your Android smartphone, and this will not prevent your application from working properly. On the contrary: this punctual cleaning will be rather beneficial, because it will allowslowdown linked to the cache accumulation of obsolete data and errors.

To clean up, go to the settings menu of your Android phone, then in the Applications section. You can then select them by one to find out if cache data can be advantageously erased.

Erase applications, optional

During this consultation of each application in detail, you will probably realize that some contain a large amount of storage data, sometimes several gigas. It is possible to “delete data” data to gain space on your Android, as can be seen above (last capture on the right, above red frame).

But beware: at your own risk. That will delete all account information and other data recorded via these services. Downloaded music and videos, GPS cards, or game backups. This possibility is therefore to be used only if you are sure that you no longer need the application and all the information it will have stored on memory your smartphone.

Download: cleaning to gain storage

Other elements can still be deleted to release Android storage: these files that have been downloaded over time and which are no longer of any use. Those we have even saved – forms, order formula, images – and that you can choose to erase manually via a file manager, as on a computer. Or the contents downloaded from applications for offline use. Go take a look in Netflix, Spotify, Google Maps, Waze and others to erase films, series, music or cards that will no longer serve you.

Erase unnecessary files to gain space

But the big cleaning does not stop there. To save space on your Android smartphone, you can also get rid of the unwanted elements accumulated on your smartphone, when using applications for example. These are more difficult to identify for manual deletion. The most recent devices offer a cleaning mode which will regularly make room. This function will make it possible to detect and eliminate unnecessary files, without affecting your precious data (photos, backups, etc. )). Example here on a Samsung smartphone under Android 7.

Older terminals can be cleaned thanks to a dedicated application. Let us quote, among the best known, Ccleaner (left-wing catches below) or Google Files Capture on the right). These tools will allow you very simply to eliminate unnecessary data and free up storage space on your Android. They will also take care of serving the caches, thus avoiding having to manually carry out the operation described above.

SD and Cloud card to free up space on your smartphone

Finally, if your internal memory overflows from data from which you do not want to separate, remains the possibility of transferring it to a external storage space. Either thanks to an SD card, which will save locally photos, music or other files. And possibly, on relatively recent phones (Android 6.0 minimum), to transfer or install applications and their data, which will however require unifying the SD card with the internal memory of the phone.

Another option to consider, finally, to increase the available space: make a backup of your files in the cloud using one of the many online storage services. With the advantage of being able to access it from all your devices, And to be sure not to lose them in the event of a problem with your smartphone (loss, breakage, flight. )). While ensuring to opt for a secure solution, especially if you plan to save personal or sensitive data.

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