Samsung will replace OneDrive sync on TVs with Google Photos integration

Samsung is replacing the Microsoft OneDrive integration in the Magic Screen feature of its 2021 QLED TVs with Google Photos.

In 2018, Samsung introduced a feature for its QLED TVs called Magic Screen. With it, these TVs could show artwork on the display when you are not using them or viewing some other content on them, turning themselves into a piece of art or a photo frame rather than just being a black slab of glass sitting idle on your wall.

One of the features of Magic Screen is the Microsoft OneDrive integration, where, it can fetch images from the cloud storage platform and display them on the TV, saving you the hassle of connecting physical storage to the TV to transfer photos. Well, Samsung is replacing it with Google Photos in its 2021 model year TVs.

Samsung has sent a notice in the SmartThings app for Android notifying that in June 2025 (which has already passed), it will release an update to the Magic Screen app, which will replace the Microsoft OneDrive in 2021 model year TVs with Google Photos. The South Korean tech giant hasn’t given a reason for replacing OneDrive with Google Photos.

samsung replacing microsoft onedrive in 2021 qled tv's magic screen with google photos

This news could be good for some and bad for others. People who uploaded photos to OneDrive to showcase them on their Samsung QLED TV will now have to transfer those images to Google Photos. As for people who didn’t use Magic Screen because it didn’t have Google Photos integration will now be able to take advantage of the feature. Note that Samsung stopped offering this feature a few years ago. So, this change doesn't affect new TVs.

Abid Iqbal Shaik - Writer

First Samsung device: Galaxy S II

I’m a computer science engineer living in Hyderabad, India, who has a keen interest in automobiles and consumer electronics. My journalism career kicked off in 2017 with MySmartPrice where I wrote news, features, buying guides, and explanatory articles about technology among other things, and reviewed many products, including smartphones, tablets, laptops, PC components, smartwatches, audio devices, wearables, and smart home products. Since then, I have worked for 91Mobiles, Apple, and Onsitego, before finally landing on SamMobile.

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