Google One is a subscription service that offers unique perks to everything Google. While it’s a little difficult to understand, as most features are behind a different tier and have different limitations, it’s still one of the best services Google has ever created. It makes it easy for users to gain access to more storage, share that storage with up to five people, and edit photos more easily — among many other things.
Google One is a compelling service that offers seamless backups, discounts on Google Store purchases, and more. We’ll examine each of these exciting features in more detail to help you understand their benefits and unique offerings.
1 Seamless backups
Automatic backups are seamless and save you a headache when things go wrong
Backing up your smartphones and other gadgets is more important than ever. You never know what update could cause a catastrophic failure, and with bugs sweeping through and onto public releases, it’s more important than ever to have your data backed up to multiple sources and locations.
Google One offers automatic backups for your photos, videos, contacts, passwords, and even device settings, enabling you to restore them easily. The service lets you back up as many devices as you have connected with the Google One account, assuming you have enough space for all of them with your current tier.
2 More storage
While the amount of storage will differ from tier to tier, every plan offers extra space
Google offers 15GB of storage by default, which is enough to store your emails and a few photos on Google Photos and Google Drive. While the company is unlikely to increase its free 15GB storage limit anytime soon, users can upgrade to the most basic Google One tier, which offers 100GB of space for a very affordable $1.99 per month or $19.99 per year.
Why won’t Google increase its 15GB free storage?
Google thinks 15GB is enough for most people, and it might not be wrong
The Premium tier ups the storage for 2TB, and even includes up to 10% back on purchases made at the Google Store, further incentivizing people to use other Google services and products. It’s a win-win, if you think about it, especially if you like what Google offers. The standard premium tier costs $9.99 per month, or $99.99 per year.
3 Ability to share a subscription with up to 5 people
This benefit is available for all tiers
Family sharing is one of the best features to come to cloud and other services, and Google enables users to share their subscription package with up to 5 people. If you have multiple friends or family members who rely on the service, you could easily share the cost of the subscription and spread it amongst everyone or simply share your package with someone else at no additional cost to you.
This is especially great for those on the higher tier plans, as it lets them access a shared storage space that can be used once their 15GB of personal storage space is filled. This feature also enables you to share other benefits, such as the ability to edit photos using the premium features, dark web monitoring, backups, and any other benefits included with your selected tier.
4 Up to 10% back on purchases made on Google Store
Save money on your next Google Store purchase
The Google Premium plan, which costs $9.99 monthly, gives you up to 10% back on purchases made on Google Store. This is especially great if you like Google’s Pixel and Nest products, as they let you make some money back on higher purchases. If you plan to dive into the ecosystem and buy everything Google, it could save you a sizeable amount in the long run.
What’s even better is that Google often sends out Google One member-only discounts to users, offering even greater discounts than what is available to the general public. It’s a great way to save money. It’s worth noting that users in the UK can also receive 3% back on purchases made with the Standard plan, which costs £2.49 per month. Unfortunately, this doesn’t appear to be available for users in the US.
5 Better Google Photos editing features
Blur and HDR enhancement features are locked behind a paid plan
Initially, Google only offered money back on selected purchases, higher storage tiers, and additional Google Photos editing features in the Google One subscription, which included the ability to blur, select the sky, add portrait light effects, adjust the color focus, and enhance photos with beautiful and natural looking HDR effects.
The company also added Magic Eraser, which used to be a Pixel-only feature for quite some time, and various other AI tools into the package. It’s worth noting that some still require a Pixel device, while the ones mentioned above are already available on other devices subscribed to a Basic or Premium plan.
6 Gemini Advanced
Get work done quickly and more efficiently
Google’s “most capable AI model,” Gemini Advanced, is bundled with the recently announced AI Premium plan, which also comes with 2TB of storage. Gemini Advanced uses the 1.5 Pro model, which enables users to gain access to a 1 million token context window. This means that you can upload a 1,500-page PDF, 30,000 lines of code, and one-hour videos to analyze and tackle complex problems.
The model also helps summarize key information, edit code, and address other difficult-to-understand challenges that could sometimes take hours, weeks, or even months to conduct manually.
What do you actually get with Gemini Advanced?
Ultra, Pro, Advanced, 1.0, 1.5 — what does it all mean?
The AI plan also includes all the latest AI features in Gmail, Docs, Slides, Meet, and other Google services, helping you write resumes, create more engaging visuals for presentations, and, in general, the ability to work faster and more efficiently. This plan also comes with appointment scheduling in Google Calendar and all the other benefits that can be found in the Premium 2TB plan.
Features that are only available in the UK
It’s rare for the UK to receive even more benefits from Google than those in the US, but it looks like it is indeed the case this time around. Those across the pond can receive several other features that users in the US won’t be able to take advantage of, including the following:
- 3% back on purchases: Users on the Standard plan who pay £2.49 per month, or £24.99 annually, can get 3% back on their purchases made on Google Store.
- Fitbit Premium: Whether you have a Fitbit tracker, a smartwatch, or a Pixel Watch, you’ll be able to benefit from the 1,000 + additional guided workout videos, the daily readiness score, and other health and wellness reports Google provides with the paid subscription, which is now bundled with the Premium 2TB plan.
- Nest Aware: Google Nest camera users will be relieved to see that the Nest Aware subscription is bundled with the Premium 2TB plan. It includes 30 days of event video history, face detection, remote control, sound detection, video streaming and recording, as well as notifications.
- There are even more storage tiers: The UK gets a Standard 200GB tier, a Premium 5TB, 10TB, 20 TB, and even a 30TB plan. The 5TB plan costs £19.99 per month or £199.99 per year. The 10TB goes for £39.99 per month, 20TB for £79.99 per month, and the most expensive 30TB plan will set users back £119.99 per month.
