Support

Photodrift is built and maintained by one person. The fastest path to a response is email: support@suprun.ca. Expect a reply within a day or two.

Common questions

Does Photodrift work with iCloud Photos?

Yes, and it is worth knowing exactly how, because the two halves behave differently.

Reading: nothing is downloaded. Photodrift asks PhotoKit for thumbnails with network access switched off, so it never pulls full-resolution originals down from iCloud. If you use Optimize iPhone Storage and a photo is not on the device, it is compared from the local thumbnail. That means no cellular data, no waiting for downloads, and no surprise iCloud traffic from a scan — but it also means the comparison for offloaded photos uses a smaller image than for ones stored locally.

Deleting: it syncs, like any delete. Photodrift uses Apple's standard PHAssetChangeRequest.deleteAssets, the same call the Photos app makes. With iCloud Photos switched on, deleting here removes the photo from iCloud and from every device signed into the same account. It lands in Recently Deleted, which also syncs, and stays recoverable for 30 days.

One consequence people are caught by, and it is not specific to this app: your storage does not drop until Recently Deleted is emptied. For 30 days those photos still count. Photos → Albums → Recently Deleted → Select → Delete All if you need the space now.

Will deleted photos really come back if I change my mind?

Yes. Photodrift uses Apple's PhotoKit to delete — which moves photos to Recently Deleted in the Photos app. They sit there for 30 days, fully recoverable. Open Photos → Albums → Recently Deleted and tap Recover.

What's the difference between Free and Pro?

Free covers exact duplicates (photos with matching metadata — re-saves, AirDrops, same-second bursts), with no limit. Pro adds the rest: near-duplicates (photos that look the same but aren't byte-identical), blurry shots, screenshot groups, and videos — which are usually where the gigabytes actually are. Pro is a one-time $9.99 unlock — no subscription.

How does smart cleanup pick the keeper?

When you swipe left ("Clean up") on a cluster, Photodrift keeps the sharpest photo and trashes the rest. Sharpness is measured by Laplacian variance — higher = more high-frequency detail = sharper. If you'd rather pick keepers manually, tap "Pick photos" in the middle instead of swiping.

The scan finished but I see "Scanning more…" still.

Photodrift runs in two phases. Phase 0 is metadata-only and finishes in a couple of seconds. Phase 1 is the Vision deep scan — it can take 30 seconds to a few minutes depending on library size. The "Scanning more…" banner means Phase 1 is still working in the background; you can start swiping during it. Tap the banner to jump to the live progress view.

I restored a backup / got a new phone — how do I get Pro back?

Settings → Premium → Restore purchase. As long as you're signed into the same Apple ID that bought it, the unlock comes back instantly. There's no account to log into — StoreKit handles it.

Will the app upload my photos somewhere?

No. All scanning is on-device. The app has no analytics SDKs and no networking outside what StoreKit needs to process the IAP. See the privacy policy for specifics.

The scan missed some duplicates I expected.

The default scan covers your most recent ~1,500 photos for the instant pass and the last six months for the Vision pass. To scan the entire library, use Phase 2 — visible as "Scan more →" once Phase 1 finishes. It's slower (full library + Vision) but catches older clusters.

I'm seeing different behavior in the simulator vs my phone.

Apple's Vision framework has known limitations in the iOS Simulator (feature prints and some metadata can behave oddly). Real-device behavior is what counts — if something's not working on your phone, please email.

Bug reports

Found a bug? Email support@suprun.ca with:

• What you were trying to do
• What happened instead
• iPhone model + iOS version (Settings → General → About)
• App version (Settings → About inside Photodrift)
• A screenshot if useful

Feature requests

Same email. The app is intentionally focused — but the inbox is open and reads are real.

Refunds

IAP refunds are handled by Apple, not by Photodrift. Open reportaproblem.apple.com and request a refund within 90 days of purchase. If Apple denies it and you think the app misbehaved, email us — we'll do what we can.