O2 launched My Cloud. It backs up photos and videos cheaper than Google or Apple, but it's not for everyone

Is your phone reporting full memory and you’re wondering which photos to sacrifice? According to a survey by NMS agency for O2, 72% of Czechs deal with lack of space, most often by deleting photos and videos. The operator is now launching O2 My Cloud, which automatically backs up images and frees up space on your phone without you losing your memories. For 2 TB, it asks for 99 CZK per month, which is significantly less than what Google and Apple charge.

How does O2 My Cloud work?

You activate the service in the Moje O2 application, where you also set up an access password. Then you download the separate O2 My Cloud application for Android or iOS, log in with your phone number, and it will start backing up photos and videos in the background from your gallery. Once the images are safe, the application will offer to delete their copies from your phone. According to the operator, the files are stored in secure data centers in the European Union, specifically Amazon Web Services servers.

In addition to photos, music and documents can be stored in the cloud, and you can access files from a tablet or computer. The application itself sorts images, and you can search them by faces, places, or objects. Albums, sharing by link in original quality, converting a photographed document to PDF, and a Vault for sensitive files are also included. However, migrating from another service is not yet very convenient, as automatic import only works from Dropbox. You will therefore have to move photos from Google Photos or OneDrive manually.

Prices are more favorable than Google or Apple

For smaller capacities, O2 gives you three times the space for the same price compared to Google, whose Basic plan offers only 100 GB for 59.99 CZK. Monthly prices in the Czech Republic are as follows.

• O2 My Cloud: 300 GB for 59 CZK, 2 TB for 99 CZK
• Google One: 100 GB for 59.99 CZK, 200 GB for 79.99 CZK, 2 TB as part of Google AI Plus for 299.99 CZK
• Apple iCloud+: 50 GB for 25 CZK, 200 GB for 79 CZK, 2 TB for 249 CZK

The difference is even greater for higher capacities. For 2 TB, you’ll pay 150 CZK more per month with Apple, which is 1,800 CZK per year. In Google’s price list, 2 TB is only available as part of the Google AI Plus plan for 299.99 CZK, which also includes higher Gemini AI limits. With monthly payment, this is a difference of approximately 2,400 CZK per year compared to O2.

The cheaper AI Plus variant with 400 GB costs 149.99 CZK, as we wrote in June. Even so, you’ll pay 51 CZK more for a fifth of the space than for the 2TB option from O2.

Payment for O2 cloud storage will appear on your regular operator bill, the first month is free without commitment.

Why do Google and Apple charge more?

However, comparing prices alone isn’t entirely fair. Google Photos shares storage with Gmail and Google Drive, while iCloud+ also covers iPhone backup, iCloud Mail, Messages, and passwords. Furthermore, both services are tightly integrated into their respective platforms, whereas O2 My Cloud functions as another standalone application that many users may not easily get used to.

There’s also a difference in sharing. Both Google and Apple plans can be shared with up to five family members without extra charge, whereas O2’s subscription cannot be shared. You might lose out, especially against Apple: if three people in a household want 2 TB, they’ll pay a total of 297 CZK with O2, while one shared iCloud+ with 2 TB costs 249 CZK. However, if two of them only need 300 GB, the O2 bill drops to 217 CZK, and the operator is cheaper with Google in both cases.

O2 My Cloud will be most appreciated by those for whom photos and videos occupy the vast majority of cloud space. Emails, documents, and phone backups can often fit into the free space provided by both Google (15 GB) and Apple (5 GB). On an iPhone, however, be aware that after turning off Photos on iCloud, your photo library will start saving to device backup, so 5 GB will quickly overflow. Therefore, exclude photos from the backup in iCloud settings. You can find out how much space each item occupies in Google One storage manager, or in iPhone Settings under your name.

However, not every customer of the operator can order the service. Prepaid cards and business numbers are out of luck for now, according to the same source, and even O2’s internet or TV services alone won’t help. Furthermore, anyone who leaves the operator will likely have to move their library elsewhere.

Would you entrust your photos to a mobile operator’s cloud?

Source: PR/O2