So I have a problem. Android keeps deleting the videos and pictures I download from the inter-web. But it's not me and it's certainly not my tablet. It's the OS itself. If you're having issues with your Android phone or tablet deleting your downloaded files, this will likely solve them. So keep reading!
When does it happen & why does it happen?
The first question is: when does your content get deleted and what kind of content does get deleted. The second question is: why does Android delete your content anyway?
You don't have to worry about apps or games or anything downloaded from the PlayStore or the internet but installed onto your device as an app or APK or a movie or video that has been added to the proper Google Movies Library app getting deleted. This is why music you download from the internet onto your phone or tablet will never go missing, because once it's downloaded it is stored in the official Google Music app. Pictures don't currently have a proper home though, so they are always at risk of getting removed unless you use something like Picsart for custom art in which case those pictures are safe.
To wrap up: videos and movies and pictures are at risk of being deleted at random UNLESS they are added to an official app like Google Movies.
So why does it happen?
Well my educated guess is it's because Android is NOT a computer OS, and if you treat it like one you'll see the difference. Google may be all 'open' and 'free' with Android but they still want you to download stuff through their own PlayStore, otherwise they lose money on music and movies. The Android OS is built around the PlayStore, not the internet. If you download movies from the web instead of the PlayStore, then those movies are likely added to your gallery or a third party movie app you downloaded. But because the original path the download took was from the web to your device, that path is crooked and full of potholes, so ultimately your content is at risk of getting corrupted or ruined or, in this case, deleted.
Just tell me how to keep my stuff safe already!!!
OK, OK. Jesus.
So, how do you ensure the movies and pics you get from the internet are not deleted? Well, there's not a 100% full-proof way. But there are some workarounds. Well, 2 to be exact.
NUMBER 1: YOU MAKE COPIES
Making copies of your content is an obvious way to avoid losing your stuff. To do this you'll need to download a file explorer as the most recent installments of Android no longer allow you to explore files and the system to the same depths as before unless you have a root.
I recommend ES File Explorer. It doesn't need a root and has the best UI of any file organiser I've used. It's far better than AndroZip too.
So here's what you do:
1: Go into ES File Explorer or whatever other file exploring app you have.
2: Go onto 'Downloads'.
3: Find the files you want to ensure don't get deleted.
4: Select the files and copy them.
5: Create a 'New Folder'.
6: Go into the folder and paste the copied files.
7: Should be done!
So, what did that achieve? Well now you have copies of the files you want to keep, the chances of both the original file and the new copy one being deleted is unlikely. In fact, the chances of your copy file being deleted at all is slim. I've made copies of multiple videos and the copies have not ever been removed. The only issue with this system though is it takes up more memory as you've got multiple versions of one file. So if you download a 1GB film and make a copy, that's 2Gig taken up right there. If you're confident that the copy file won't get removed though, you can delete the original file yourself if you want. This will save memory.
There is another option though.
NUMBER 2: YOU DOWNLOAD THRID-PARTY GALLERY APPS
This isn't as full-proof as the above method but it can work.
To save pictures and videos from getting removed you can try downloading third-party movie/video and pictures galleries from the PlayStore. This can work, but given the fact that the path the content took when it was downloaded is still the same, content may still go missing.
So there you have it. Hopefully Google will sort this out but until then prepare to have your downloaded videos and pictures always at risk of getting deleted. If you have any other workarounds for this issue please comment them! PEACE!