Is there a way for custom/advanced "rules"? (based on location)

[mangoboy92]

Hello

I like the rules feature, but it is very limited. I can only set my phone to silent/vibrate/ring or turn on "do not disturb" mode, based on wifi network or location.

What I want to do is, change the directory where photos taken are saved based on my current GPS location. That way I could have a custom directory dedicated for photos taken at work. I take a lot of photos at work and I do not want these to get backed up to Google Photos like the photos I take in my free time.

I hope one of you can provide a smart solution. I would install an additional app if necessary, but I would prefer onboard solutions.

Thank you for your time.

Best regards

 

[Hadron]

There are automation apps that can provide location-based rules with more flexibility than a built-in (and probably manufacture=specific) feature. Tasker is the best-known, but there are others (MacroDroid was a thing a few years ago, I've not checked lately).

But what you specifically ask for is probably not possible. Where the camera app stores photos is a setting within the camera app, and there are 2 reasons why no automation feature or app can change that: firstly each phone model has its own camera app, which will organise its settings independently, so no automation app could know how to do this for all phones. And secondly the setting will be in the app's "private" data which no app without admin privileges can access. The Play Store rules also forbid an app interfering with another app's function, but that's not an absolute barrier, whereas the others are.

I can think of ways of working around this, but they also would require admin (root) privileges.

So really your best hope would be if there is an alternative camera app that has this feature. I have never heard of one, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

A more practical approach might be to install a second camera app, set it to store its photos in a different location, and only let Google Photos back up one or the other. Then you can use one camera app for photos you want uploaded and one for those you don't. It wouldn't be automatic, you'd have to remember, but it would work.

 

[mangoboy92]

Hey,
thank you very much for all all of the information, it was much more than what I had hoped for! Also, the idea with a second camera app is both simple and brilliant, I will do that

Best regards