After Years of Waiting, a New Snapseed Finally Arrived on Android
Mobile photographers could have been forgiven for thinking that the beloved Google-owned photo editor Snapseed was dead before it received its first major update in years last June, bringing the app to version 3.0. Good news for Snapseed fans, the wait for the next major update was much shorter, and Snapseed 4.0 has arrived on iOS and Android.
As a bit of background on why Snapseed 4.0 is such promising news for the photo editor’s supporters, before Snapseed 3.0, the last major update, version 2.17, arrived way back in 2017. To put that into perspective, the iPhone X debuted in September 2017.
The original Snapseed app was launched on iPhone back in June 2011 by Nik Software, known best by photographers for its excellent Nik Collection photo editing plugins on desktop. Google acquired Nik Software in September 2012. Eventually, support for acquired Nik Software products languished. Google abandoned the Nik Collection in May 2017 and DxO acquired it later that year. The fact that Google’s last major update to Snapseed, prior to 3.0 on iOS last year, was in 2017 is no coincidence.
However, with yet another major release in the books, it is fair to assume that Snapseed is very much a living product, and that Google is giving the app a reasonable level of attention. Snapseed 4.0 introduces many new features, especially on Android, which notably did not receive the major 3.0 update last summer. It was a very odd omission, especially given that Snapseed is owned by Google, the maker of Android.
This strangeness has finally been corrected, and Android users now have full access to all the features Snapseed 3.0 introduced on iOS and beyond, including a redesigned editing experience and a bevy of film-inspired filters. These filters are inspired by popular film stocks from storied companies like Kodak, Fujifilm, and Polaroid.
Many other photo editing tools are accessible, of course, including controls for brightness, contrast, saturation, and much more. These edits are all non-destructive, and Snapseed offers some RAW editing support with more on the way. The app also includes one-tap masking, selective editing, healing tools, batch editing, and many special effects, such as halation, bloom, dehaze, and more.
Since Snapseed 3.0 arrived on iOS last June, Snapseed has also gotten an in-app camera, which is also now available on Android with the 4.0 update. The Snapseed Camera lets mobile photographers access many of the app’s editing tools in real time, including the analog-inspired filters.
“Our goal for Snapseed 4.0 was to make the app easier to use while also adding more powerful capabilities,” Snapseed explained on the dedicated r/snapseed subreddit. “As I hope folks who have been here over the last few months can attest, we’re listening and committed to make Snapseed better…”
Snapseed continues that Android users won’t have to “wait years for the next update,” noting that the team plans to keep adding features to the popular app and make it “even more powerful.”
Pricing and Availability
Best of all, Snapseed 4.0 is entirely free on iOS and Android. There are no subscriptions, in-app purchases, or membership fees.
Image credits: Snapseed
