Google Photos will add Ultra HDR feature even for old photos

Google has begun gradually introducing a new feature in the Google Photos application that allows you to convert standard photos to Ultra HDR format. This is reported by Android Authority.

Ultra HDR technology preserves both the regular version of the image (SDR) and a separate brightness map, which provides a wider color and light dynamics on HDR-enabled displays. At the same time, photos in Google Photos remain compatible with devices without HDR – they are displayed in standard quality on them.

Some Android users have already noticed the appearance of this option in the Google Photos editor. However, the function may not work temporarily, since image processing takes place on Google servers. In addition, a prerequisite is the presence of Android 14 or a later version of the operating system.

Ultra HDR will replace the previous HDR effect in the editor and will be available in the “Adjustment” section. Users will be able to adjust the level of influence of the effect. The resulting files will be more compact because they only store the brightness map, not the entire second image.

Google Photos has begun rolling out AI-powered features that help you better organize and categorize your photos in your gallery.

One of the features, Photo Stacks, will group similar photos into stacks and select the best photo from them. This will make browsing your gallery easier by removing duplicates and similar shots from the general stream.

Another feature will use AI to recognize screenshots, documents, and other useful photos. They can be organized into separate albums and set reminders, such as a screenshot of an event ticket with a QR code that you need to enter.

According to Google, such improvements will help make the gallery neater and more user-friendly. Previously, the application already had AI-based trimming and retouching tools.

Both features have already begun to roll out to Google Photos on Android and iOS.