A photo vault that does not recompress your photos
Check whether the app stores the file you gave it or a smaller copy it made. A vault that recompresses on import cannot give you back the original. StrongRoom does not recompress what you import from Photos or Files. Photos taken inside its camera are saved as high-quality JPEGs without location data. We did not compare video output on a device for this guide.
Why a vault might recompress
Smaller files save the app's storage and speed up opening. Some apps offer a setting, "optimised" or "original", and some choose for you without telling you. The loss is real: compression removes detail that cannot be put back, and doing it twice, once in the vault and once when you export, compounds it.
For a holiday photo the difference may not matter. It matters for:
- Documents. A scanned passport or contract at low quality may be unreadable or rejected when you need to send it again.
- Anything you may print or crop later.
- Video, where recompression can change sharpness, size and sometimes the file format.
How to check any app yourself
You need one photo, any tool that shows a file's size and pixel dimensions, and about ten minutes.
- Pick a test photo with fine detail, such as text on a page, and note its file size and pixel dimensions. Copy it to a computer if that is the easiest place to read them.
- Import it into the vault, then export it back out and save it somewhere you can read its details.
- Compare the exported file's size and dimensions with the original. A much smaller file, or fewer pixels, means the app changed it.
- Zoom in on both at the same spot. Soft edges around text are a giveaway.
- Repeat with a video if videos matter to you, and compare the length, the file size and whether it still plays at the same resolution.
If the sizes match closely and the detail is the same, the app is storing what you gave it. Sizes can differ slightly even then, because exporting from some apps adds or drops small pieces of metadata, and encryption wraps the stored file in extra data that is removed on opening. A big drop is the sign to look for.
Also ask where the quality is set. An option buried in settings is easy to miss and may apply only to some imports.
What StrongRoom does
- Photos and Files imports. StrongRoom stores them as they are. The app does not resize or recompress what you pick; it copies the file that the system hands it into the Vault and encrypts it.
- In-app camera photos. These are saved as JPEG at high quality (0.9 on a 0 to 1 scale), written from the image alone, so they carry no location data. They never go into your photo library.
- Camera video. The movie the system camera produces is moved into the Vault as it is.
- Thumbnails. The grid shows small previews, which are separate, lower-quality copies used only for browsing. Opening the item gives you the original.
- What we did not test. We did not measure video output against the original on a device for this guide, and the system photo picker itself decides what file it hands to any app. Run the test above on your own phone; it takes ten minutes.
StrongRoom does not strip location or other metadata from imports; it has no tool for that. If you need location data removed before sharing, do it before the photo goes in. A camera that keeps the photo out of your photo library
Limits that stay
Quality is only part of what you are protecting. Originals stay in your photo library unless you delete them, and the Vault is a copy. If you lose the phone without an Export Package, the files are gone, full quality or not. What StrongRoom does not protect against
For the full buyer's checklist, see the pillar. -> /guides/choosing-a-vault-app/how-to-choose-a-photo-vault-app/ For what happens to a file from import to deletion, see how vaults work. -> /guides/choosing-a-vault-app/how-photo-vault-apps-work/ For a short answer on how safe the stored files are, see the encryption answer. Is a vault app really encrypted?
Frequently asked questions
Does a vault app reduce photo quality?
Some do. It depends on the app, and you can test it by importing and exporting one photo and comparing size and detail.
Does StrongRoom compress photos?
Not on import from Photos or Files. Photos taken in its own camera are saved as high-quality JPEGs.
Does StrongRoom remove location data from photos I import?
No. It has no tool for that. Photos taken in its camera carry no location data.
Are videos kept at full quality?
The app does not recompress them, but we did not compare video output on a device for this guide, so check with your own test.
Sources
No Apple documentation is cited: this guide makes no claim about iOS behaviour. The test is generic and works with any tool that shows file size and dimensions.