# photoprism-android-client: four install channels, and one of them cannot install extensions > Gallery for PhotoPrism is an Android client for browsing and searching a PhotoPrism library, with an explicit decision not to sync and an explicit compatibility target of one named PhotoPrism release. The detail that catches people out is distribution: the Google Play build has no extension catalog, because extensions are tied to sponsorship. **Radiokot/photoprism-android-client** — 📸 A convenient Android gallery for your PhotoPrism library with plenty of useful features - Repository: https://github.com/Radiokot/photoprism-android-client - Website: https://radiokot.com.ua/p/photoprism-android-gallery - Stars: 619 · Forks: 59 - Language: Kotlin - License: GPL-3.0 - Published: 2026-09-10 · Updated: 2026-09-10 · Language: en - Canonical page: https://hysenlabs.com/projects/radiokot-photoprism-android-client ## Four download channels, and the Play build has no extensions There are four ways to get the app and they are not equivalent. The first is the APK from the latest release. The second is Obtainium, which is configured with a GitHub source and a long settings payload embedded in the link. The third is F-Droid. The fourth is Google Play, and that entry carries an annotation: it has no extension catalog. That last point is the practical difference between the channels. The two extensions the project offers, Memories and the photo frame widget, are not available to anyone who installed from Play. The reason sits in the sponsors section. Sponsors receive the extensions for free, and joining the public sponsor list happens by emailing the transaction reference once a payment is complete. So the extension catalogue is a paid channel, and Play is a distribution route that does not carry it. Everything else about the app is available identically on all four routes. Only the extensions are gated, and the gate is funding rather than licensing. ## Compatibility is pinned to one named PhotoPrism release The compatibility section is short and specific. The app runs on Android 5.0 and newer, and it is confirmed to work with the PhotoPrism release of September 19, 2026. Compatibility with older PhotoPrism versions may be partial. That is a client tracking a server API, and the README is honest about the direction of the dependency. The gallery is an alternative front end for PhotoPrism, not a fork of it, so anything the server changes can break the app, and the project names the build it was last checked against rather than claiming a version range. The consequence for an upgrader is straightforward. If your server is on an older release and something in the timeline or search misbehaves, the documented answer is to compare against September 19, 2026 rather than to expect a fix in the app. The Android floor is the other half of the requirement list. Android 5.0 is an old floor for a Kotlin application, and it means the client is not the reason to upgrade your phone. ## It declines to sync, and recommends another app for that One line in the README does more to define the project than the feature list does: the gallery is not intended to sync content with the library, and for that the author recommends Autosync, a separate application linked from its Play listing. This is an unusual thing to write. Most clients in this position quietly do a half-working sync. This one names the boundary, and points at the tool that does that job. What remains in scope is a viewer with editing-adjacent actions. You browse a timeline grouped by days and months, you search with configurable queries and saved bookmarks, you share items out to Gmail, Telegram or any other app, you import photos and videos through sharing or from inside the app, you watch a full-screen slideshow, and you can delete items without archiving them first. That last capability is a genuine difference from the official web app's default flow, and it is the kind of thing that only makes sense in a client built by someone who uses PhotoPrism as their primary library. ## Three auth mechanisms and a session that does not expire Connecting to a library is the part that has been thought through most, and it covers three distinct authentication styles. There is support for mutual TLS, which matters if your PhotoPrism sits behind a client-certificate-authenticated proxy. There is HTTP basic auth. And there is SSO, with Authelia and Cloudflare Access given as the named examples. Both private and public libraries are supported. On top of that sits an endless session, meaning the password does not have to be re-entered. That is convenient for a self-hosted library you are the only user of, and it is a decision about credential storage that you should be aware of when you connect, especially with a client-certificate or token-based setup rather than a password. The wiki pages are linked for the connection guide, for mutual TLS and for SSO, so the specifics live outside the README. That is appropriate for three different authentication flows, and it does mean the README alone will not get you a working connection on an exotic setup. ## Five grid sizes, five slideshow speeds, and one jump-to-month scrollbar The timeline is the centre of the app and its controls are deliberately small in number. There are five grid size options, and the timeline is grouped by days and then by months. The scroll behaviour lets you jump quickly to a specific month rather than dragging through a continuous feed. The slideshow has five speed options. The enhanced live photo viewer is called out as working best with Samsung and Apple shots, which is a specific claim about motion-photo formats from particular vendors rather than a general compatibility promise. Search is the other half. It is configurable, and search bookmarks let you save a search configuration and reapply it later, which is the feature that turns a search box into a set of saved views for a library large enough that you keep running the same queries. Sending items out to another app is listed first among the features, which tells you what the author considered the app's job: moving photographs between places, with the timeline as the way to find them. ## TV support exists, but not from Google Play There is basic TV compatibility, letting you browse and search the timeline with a remote control. That is a real convenience for a photo library you might want on a second screen. The limitation is stated in the same bullet. It is not available in Google Play on TV, and the README links an issue comment that explains the APK route instead. So the TV support exists only if you install the APK yourself, which puts it in the same category as the extensions. On a Play install you get the phone and tablet experience, and neither the remote-control browsing nor the extensions. It is a small feature to end on, but it is a good illustration of the pattern across this project: the Play build is the reduced one, and everything extra requires the direct APK. ## GPL in the metadata, and a licence section that rejects the idea of ownership Repository metadata records the licence as GPL-3.0, and a `LICENSE` file sits at the repository root. The licence section of the README, however, is an argument rather than a grant. The author states a rejection of the concept of intellectual property, arguing that claiming ownership over information which can be replicated perfectly and endlessly is inherently flawed, and that upholding such a form of ownership ends up giving some people unjustifiable control over other people's tangible resources such as computers and printing equipment. A footnote points into `repository-assets/` for a citation. That is a mismatch worth noting rather than resolving here: a copyleft identifier in the metadata and an essay about why ownership claims are wrong in the documentation. Whether the two agree is a question for whoever needs to comply with a licence, not something to settle from a README. The rest of the repository is a conventional Android project: an `app/` module, Gradle files and the wrapper, `fastlane/` for store automation, a changelog, and `repository-assets/` for the material the licence section cites. Releases come fast and name one thing each: 1.46.1 on 2026-09-08 for error handling, 1.47.0 on 2026-09-22 adding a photosphere viewer, and 1.47.1 on 2026-09-26 for a previews size fix, with build numbers in parentheses rising from 71 to 73. ## Conclusion Use this client if you want a phone-native way to browse, search and share from a self-hosted PhotoPrism library, and if you are comfortable installing an APK. Do not expect it to replace the web app, since the README says so, and do not use the Google Play build if you want extensions. Before installing, check that your PhotoPrism build is close to the September 19, 2026 release the client is confirmed against, decide how you will handle syncing, and read the licence section rather than relying on the metadata entry. ## FAQ ### What is the Gallery for PhotoPrism app? It is an Android gallery client for a PhotoPrism library, written in Kotlin. It offers a content timeline grouped by days and months, configurable search with saved bookmarks, sharing out to other apps, import through sharing or the app, a full-screen slideshow, an enhanced live photo viewer, and basic TV remote browsing. It does not cover all of the official web app's functionality. ### How do I install the PhotoPrism Android gallery? There are four routes: the APK from the latest GitHub release, Obtainium, F-Droid and Google Play. The Google Play build is the reduced one, because it has no extension catalog, so the Memories and photo frame widget extensions require a direct APK install. The app requires Android 5.0 or newer. ### Does the Gallery for PhotoPrism app sync photos to my library? No, and that is deliberate. The README states the gallery is not intended to sync content with the library and recommends Autosync for that job, linking its Play listing. Browsing, searching, sharing and importing are in scope; background transfer to the server is not. ### Which PhotoPrism versions does the Android gallery support? The app is confirmed to work with the PhotoPrism release of September 19, 2026, and compatibility with older PhotoPrism versions may be partial. It requires Android 5.0 or newer on the device side. ## Sources - [License: GPL-3.0](https://github.com/Radiokot/photoprism-android-client/blob/main/LICENSE) - [Project website](https://radiokot.com.ua/p/photoprism-android-gallery) - [Radiokot/photoprism-android-client on GitHub](https://github.com/Radiokot/photoprism-android-client) - [README](https://github.com/Radiokot/photoprism-android-client/blob/main/README.md) - [Releases](https://github.com/Radiokot/photoprism-android-client/releases) --- Hysen Labs editorial analysis, written from the project's own repository and release notes. Cite the canonical page: https://hysenlabs.com/projects/radiokot-photoprism-android-client