Google to store an unlimited number of photos and videos for free

Google wants you to know you can snap and shoot with abandon.

The tech giant Thursday introduced a service to store and organize an unlimited number of photos and videos for free.

The Google Photos app will be available on both Android and Apple devices and support pictures of up to 16 megapixels and 1080p high-definition video.

“Photos and videos become littered across mobile devices, old computers, hard drives and online services (which are constantly running out of space),” the company said in a blog post. “It’s almost impossible to find that one photo right at the moment you need it, and sharing a bunch of photos at once is frustrating, often requiring special apps and logins.”

Google had previously provided 15 gigabytes of free storage across its platforms, which includes Google+ Photos.

Yahoo’s photo service, Flickr, offers 1 terabyte of free space, enough for 208,333 16-megapixel Jpeg photos. Apple provides five gigabytes of free storage, enough for 1,402 such photos.

Google Photos also includes editing features to create collages, animations or movies with soundtracks. Photos and videos can be shared by sending a link.

Follow @dhpierson for tech news.