No matter how much storage you have on any device, there comes a time when it tells you that it’s running out of space. This is true of any computer, iPad or phone. At that point, you need to take action to delete some of the stuff you don’t need, but it can be a huge task if you’ve kept everything from the precious pictures of great grandma to the announcement of the big pizza sale last year. Here are some tips you’ll find helpful in clearing new space on your iPhone, but some also are helpful for an iPad or computer.
①
Find out which Apps are Hogging the Most Space
You can use your settings to find out quickly who is gobbling up all that storage space. Just click on Settings>General>Usage where you’ll find a Manage Storage. This area identifies all space used by each app.
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Delete Apps You Dont Use
Once you found how much space each app takes, you might find the one that uses the most is one that you seldom use and can solve the storage problem quickly by deleting it. You can keep ahead of the game by deleting apps you don’t find appealing, like boring games that looked good, but really aren’t fun, as soon as you realize you don’t want them. Always check back in storage to insure you really did delete them and parts aren’t still lingering, taking up precious space.
③
Is Your Music Clogging Your Phone?
Seriously, you’ve downloaded hundreds of songs, but seldom listen to more than 20 of them. These songs are like buying records, you can find them online anytime you want. Just keep the ones you listen to regularly and you’ll have more space. There are also apps that let you listen to any music you want without storing it on your phone’s memory.
④
Optimize your Phone Storage
Some phones allow you to maximize your storage area by saving a lower resolution version of photos and videos directly on your phone, while sending the complete resolution to your iCloud account. All you have to do is open Settings>Phone & Camera>Optimize Phone Storage and click. That will save those uncomfortable moments when you want one more shot, but don’t have the space.
⑤
Eliminate Texts You Don’t Need or Want
If you’re like me, you tend to save every text, not because they’re of any importance, but just because you forgot to delete them. Go through your texts once a week and save the hassle of trying to delete them all at once or check the settings on your phone. Some phones have apps that allow you to automatically delete texts after a month.
⑥
Put Photos, Videos and Documents on a Backup
You don’t have to use your phone for storage if you upload it to your laptop with a USB. If you like the idea of being able to pull it up, like the pictures of the kids or cats you want to show friends, use the app Dropbox and store them online. You’ll make an abundance of room this way.
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Don’t Keep Both Photos When Using HDR
If you’re snapping photos in HDR mode, it captures both versions of the photo. You can switch it off by going to Settings>Photos & Camera and deselect Keep Normal Photos. You won’t end up with duplicates that way.
⑧
Clear your Browser History
Just like any computer, your browser history takes up memory and in an iPhone it can make a huge difference. Go to Settings > Safari and then click on Clear Cookies. You also can start at the Safari bookmark on your browser and click on clear history.
⑨
Stop Saving your Instagrams Automatically
People who Instagram frequently often forget to turn off the “Save Original Photo” switch that duplicates Instagrams. Do it and enjoy the extra space. Go into your settings and make sure you switch the ‘Save Original Photo’ toggle to off.
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Delete Played Podcasts
If you have a load of podcasts you’ve saved, you might be taking up valuable space, particularly if you don’t need to revisit them. A click on Settings in the Podcast app will take you to Episodes to Keep go from there to click on all unplayed and your phone will do it automatically.
Open the Podcasts app and go to Settings > Episodes to keep > All unplayed.
Credit:CosmoUK