5 Ways to Free Up Space on Your Android Phone

Have you ever picked up your cellphone intending to capture a moment with a photo, only to have that very same cellphone inform you that you are out of storage space?  Yeah, we have all been there, and it never fails. It happens at the most inopportune time. 

But, not to worry, because Bolt Mobile, your SaskTel Authorized Dealer, is here to show you how simple it is to free up that much needed additional storage on your Android smartphone.  With some recent updates from Android, there is a toggle for a feature called “Smart Storage,” which gives your phone permission to automatically remove backed-up photos after 30, 60, or 90 days. It will also automatically remove backed-up photos and videos if your storage is almost full.

If you find you don’t have this handy dandy tool, there are other steps you can take that will free up a lot of space.  First, you will need to determine just what it is specifically that is taking up so much space on your phone to begin with.

Investigate The Culprits

Many are surprised when they realize they have run out of space on their cell phone.  More often than not, the usual answer is that you have gone a little overboard with installing apps.

To help give you a better handle on which apps are hogging all the space, you will need to go to Settings > Apps.  To access your settings page, just click on the three dots located in the upper right-hand corner.  You will then want to click on sort by size. 

Now that you have an idea of which apps are taking up the most space on your smartphone, you can now move on to the removal process.

Freeing Up Your Storage Space

From the sort by size page, you will have a better idea of which apps are taking up the most amount of storage space.  With this information, you will be able to decide which apps will stay, and which apps need to go.

1] Unused Apps Can Go

After going to your apps screen, you will proceed to then click on the apps no longer wanted, or no longer needed, and then click on uninstall.

Once you have deleted those apps you will no longer want or need; you will notice a big difference in the storage space on your phone.

2] Auto-Delete Old  Messages

If you want an automatic means of saving storage, choosing to enable the auto-delete of your old text messages is the way to go.  With this auto-delete in place, when you exceed a preset threshold of 200 text messages, you will start with the oldest messages first and automatically remove them.

To set this function, you will need to go to Messages > Setting > More Settings > Delete Old Messages.  You will then toggle on the Delete Old Messages.

3] Use The Cloud

There is no denying that the recent invention of the cloud has presented those users of electronic devices, such as cellphones and smartphones, the advantage of a big space saver.  The beauty of backing up to the cloud is when you have finished, you can completely delete the files on your phone.

The most logical choice for an Android system is that of Google Drive.  With Google, those who sign up receive 15GB of storage space free, and if you find more is needed, you have the option to upgrade.

If Google is not to your taste, there are three other cloud storage services to choose from:

  • OneDrive—with its first-tier offer of free storage up to 5GB
  • iCloud—registering for a free account gives you 5GB of free storage.
  • Dropbox—another free account, but this one only offers 2GB of free storage.

4] Computer Back Up

Ah, the old school method of backing up files, before the cloud came into existence.  With the use of a USB cord that connects your Android phone to your computer, you can move your files and back them up there as well.  It is crucial that if this is the step you choose, that you make sure your computer has a lot of available memory.

5] Free Up Space Button

In order to use this option, you will need to access Settings > Device Maintenance > Storage.  It is worth noting that on many Android devices, the “Device Maintenance” option may currently show as “Device Care.” 

It is from here that you should be able to locate a “Free Up Space” button.  Once you have tapped this button, your cellphone will automatically begin the process of freeing up more storage space.

The freeing up works by way of eliminating and deleting those files you have backed up already.

If you find that your smartphone does not have a “Free Up Space” button, it will offer you a screen that prompts you to “Clean Now.”  To get to this prompt, you will tap Settings > Device Maintenance > Storage.  Once you are on the storage page, you will see the amount of GB’s to be freed up, depending on how many files you have already backed up on your phone.  When you tap on “Clean now,” you should see a blue circle with a check mark.

Once the cleaning has concluded, you will be able to see how much you freed up of space, while also showing you how much you now have left.  There will be other viewable metrics as well, such as:

  • User/system data
  • Any data that is unnecessary
  • Your current available space

Closing Thoughts

After completing one of these processes, you will find that your smartphone will work much better than when you started—almost like it’s brand new again.  You will also find that you now have much more space for taking photos or filming videos.

If you find that you still need even more space, you can choose to go the route of buying more cloud space.  There are also select smartphones that accommodate the use of an SD card for extra storage.

Come into Bolt Mobile, your SaskTel Authorized Dealer with 4 great locations in Saskatoon for your cellphone, internet, and cable TV needs. If you need further help, we’ve got mobile experts to guide you along the way.

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