If there is one thing that Google knows how to do best, then it has to be creating useful apps. If you check your smartphone, laptop, or even your car, you are guaranteed to find at least one app that is created by the Android parent. The best example of this is Google Photos, which is an indispensable app on all devices. Google Photos is a great app to have installed on your smartphone because it automatically organizes your photos and videos, but this is not where the app’s functionalities end.
Google Photos is also super useful to install on Firestick because it provides up to 15GB of free storage for photos and a smart automatic sorting feature that organizes your media files and creates albums. The challenging part about installing Google Photos on Firestick is that the app is not available to download directly from the Amazon Appstore.
Fortunately, there is a way around this, and today we are going to show you how to do it.
Install Google Photos on Firestick
Since Google Photos is not available to download from the Amazon Appstore, you are required to download and install the APK version of the app manually. This might sound tricky if you are not too tech-savvy, but you don’t need to worry about it because we will guide you every step of the day.
Installing APKs on Firestick is possible through a method dubbed as sideloading. This works only on devices that have enabled the “Unknown Sources “option and by using a special third-party app called Downloader. The app is free to use, and it can be downloaded directly from the Amazon Appstore. Without any further ado, follow the steps below to install Google Photos on Firestick:
- Turn On your Firestick device and head over to the home screen;
- Access the Settings panel and then head over to the My Fire TV menu (shown below);
- Open the option called Developer Options and enable the Apps From Unknown Sources setting (shown below);
- A pop-up warning will appear, and you need to select the Yes option to confirm the action (shown below);
- Access the Search menu by selecting the magnifying glass icon in the top-left corner of the home screen;
- Type or use vocal commands to search for “Downloader”;
- A list of results will appear, and you need to select the Downloader app (shown below);
- Next, click on the Download option to begin downloading the app on your Firestick device;
- The app will now automatically download and install on your Firestick device.
The next step in the installation process is to access the Downloader app. The app can be found in the Apps and Games panel. After opening Downloader, follow the steps below to download and install the latest Google Photos APK file successfully.
- Paste the following link in Downloader’s URL Box: https://bit.ly/3d34i4A;
- Select the Go option to kick off the download;
- Once the latest Google Photos APK file finishes downloading, you will be redirected to the installation screen;
Scroll down on the installation screen and select the Install option to begin the process (shown below);
- All that is left to do is wait for the installation process to finish and begin using Google Photos on your Firestick device.
We want to mention that the Google Photos app will now be available in your Firestick device’s Apps and Games panel. Make sure to sign in with your Google Account when launching the app so that you have access to all your photos and videos that are saved on the Cloud with the same account.
In addition, apps that are installed through sideloading will not receive any automatic OTA (over the air) updates. This means that you are required to re-install the latest APK version of Google Photos when a new update is released.
How to Cast Google Photos to Firestick
Even though following the guide above is not difficult, we know that some people don’t want to download and install apps on their Firestick device manually. The process can be tricky at times, and luckily, there is a simpler alternative. You can always choose to cast Google Photos on Firestick instead of sideloading the app’s latest APK version.
This installation method works because you use your smartphone’s casting functionality to display images from Google Photos directly on Firestick. Doing this is a great way to avoid sideloading Google Photos and still access all your photos on the TV set. Check out the guide below to learn how to cast Google Photos on Firestick.
- Connect your Firestick device and smartphone to the same local Wi-Fi network (a stable connection is required);
- Head over to the Google Play Store on your Android-powered smartphone and download the app called “All Cast App”;
- The app now needs to be downloaded and installed on your Firestick device via the Amazon Appstore;
- Now, you need to do is follow the installation wizard for All Cast App;
- The next step is to follow the on-screen instructions provided by the app so that you can connect the Android-powered device to Firestick;
- If you followed the steps correctly, then this means that you can now cast images from the Google Photos app on your smartphone directly to your Firestick device.
Sidenote
Before we sign off, we want to mention that the latest generation smartphones are equipped with a built-in search function. Thanks to this, you will no longer have to install the All Cast App and use the built-in function instead.
If you are not sure if your smartphone supports casting or not, you can always check for this by following the next steps: Settings App – Connected Devices – Connection Preference – Cast.
Conclusion
There are many reasons why you might want to install Google Photos on Firestick, and if you follow the guidelines presented by us today, we are sure that you can do this in less than ten minutes. The app is equipped with a plethora of useful features that will make it super easy to organize all your photos and videos on Firestick. Nonetheless, let us know in the comments section below if you have any unanswered questions.
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