How do I delete photos from my iPhone 12 that do not have a trash can icon?

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I’ve been a faithful member here for many years, and finally thought I’d reach out to the community with a brain stumper that I’ve been unable to solve.

I’m using an iPhone 12 and running iTunes on a Windows 11 PC that I sync to.  This iPhone is the 3rd I’ve owned over a period of 10 years, and have synced the prior phones to other pcs, and my current windows 11 pc.  All I can find online, is that I need to sync the phone with iTunes and all will be made right with the world.  Not so.

If there are any Apple Jedi’s out there that can assist me with this issue, I would REALLY appreciate it.  I’ve got copies off all the photos I want to keep on my pc, so if I had to, I could reset my iPhone to factory (provided all the apps would come back over).  I could simply set the photos not to sync, but the preferred solution would be to delete individual photos on my phone that I no longer want to store there.  Any help or direction would be appreciated.

Best regards,

d

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dwallace115 wrote:

I could reset my iPhone to factory (provided all the apps would come back over).  I could simply set the photos not to sync, but the preferred solution would be to delete individual photos on my phone that I no longer want to store there.

First, all apps would not come back after reset unless you restore from iCloud / on PC backup

For deleting photos, connect your iPhone to your pc by USB .
Open the photos folder and delete photos.

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That of course would make much sense, HOWEVER, those photos do not appear in any folder in the storage when I connect via USB.  As I previously said, I’ve tried all the ‘common sense’ solutions without success.  This is a Jedi class problem.  Thank you however for the reply.

 

regards,

d

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From Clearing Up Space: How to Delete Photos on Your iPhone:

1. Open the Photos App.
   Locate and tap on the “Photos” app icon on your iPhone’s home screen. This will open the app and display your entire photo library.
2. Select Photos to Delete.
   Browse through your photo library and tap on the album that contains the photos you want to delete. If you want to delete photos from the entire library, skip this step.
3. Tap “Select”
   In the top-right corner of the screen, tap on the “Select” button. This will allow you to choose multiple photos for deletion.
4. Choose Photos to Delete.
   Tap on each photo you wish to delete. Selected photos will be marked with a blue checkmark. You can also swipe your finger across a row of photos to select multiple images at once.
5. Delete the Photos.
   Once you have selected all the photos you want to delete, tap on the trash can icon located at the bottom-right corner of the screen. A confirmation pop-up will appear. Tap “Delete [X] Photos” to permanently remove the selected photos from your iPhone.
6. Empty Recently Deleted Album.
   Deleted photos are moved to the “Recently Deleted” album, where they remain for 30 days before being permanently deleted. To free up space immediately, open the “Recently Deleted” album and tap on “Select” in the top-right corner. Then, tap on “Delete All” to remove all photos in this album permanently.

HP Compaq 6000 Pro SFF PC / Windows 10 Pro / 22H2
Intel®Core™2 “Wolfdale” E8400 3.0 GHz / 8.00 GB
HP ProDesk 400 G5 SFF PC / Windows 11 Pro / 23H2
Intel®Core™ “Coffee Lake” i3-8100 3.6 GHz / 16.00 GB

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Doug Wallace wrote:

any folder in the storage

By storage you mean your iPhone 12 ?
Have you tried deleting from iCloud.com ?

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Again, thank you for the kind response, HOWEVER, as you can see by the attached screen shot from my phone, the trash can icon is greyed out and can not be selected for these pictures.  In reality there are about 200 photos I want to delete, but didn’t need to take a lot of time and select them all when a small sample would demonstrate my point.

I literally have tried all the conventional ways to delete the photos (including this one that you so kindly suggested) and there are a great number of photos that simply won’t allow themselves to be deleted from the phone.  When I attach to my pc via usb cable, those photos that I can’t delete don’t appear in ANY folder in the storage on the phone.  I’m at my wits end with this, and even the Verizon tech was stumped.

Thank you again for taking the time to assist.

regards,

d

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Do you sync photos to iCloud ?

Have you tried iCloud.com ?

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Thank you for offering that suggestion, but as you can see from this screenshot from my PC, there are 0 pictures saved to iCloud.  I only use iCloud for windows to sync my contacts and calendar with my phone.

Regards,

d

(for some reason I’m unable to insert the screenshot).  But, there are 0 pictures listed.

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Doug Wallace wrote:

(for some reason I’m unable to insert the screenshot).

You have to be logged in to add attachments. Un-logged in users (see “Guest” below your Avatar) are not allowed to upload files.

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See if this helps :

https://www.idownloadblog.com/2021/06/10/cant-delete-photos-on-your-iphone-heres-what-you-need-to-do/

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253676705?sortBy=rank

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/251776841?sortBy=rank

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No, all data is synced to my local  pc only.

 

d

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dwallace115 wrote:

I could simply set the photos not to sync, but the preferred solution would be to delete individual photos on my phone that I no longer want to store there.  Any help or direction would be appreciated.

I’ve had the same problem with my iPhone 13 Pro and found the following solution.
The link below is for the free version of EaseUS MobiMover.
Download and install the app. Connect the iPhone to the PC and launch the app. The main function of the app is to transfer files between the PC and the iPhone, but in the app’s Browse function it will browse the Photos app and not folders, so any photo that displays in the photo app will display in the app. The app will let you delete any photo and it will delete the photo from the iPhone Photo app. The app is free but the free version limits the number of file transfers in a day, but I don’t know if that applies to the number of photos deleted. The paid version is unlimited.

EaseUS MobiMover Free

HTH, Dana:))

2 users thanked author for this post.

dwallace115, WCHS

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Wow.  I’m downloading now, and if the trial works I’ll spring for the software.  This appears to be the only viable option at this point.  Another user had pointed out that perhaps I had another apple id years ago which is entirely feasible as I had to switch from a no longer used email domain and that of course was my user id.  At this point however with a dead email, trying to resurrect something 6 or 7 years old when they want to send confirmation to an email that no longer exists seems a bit of a waste of time.

Thank you very much for pointing out this application to me, and I’ll certainly let the string know how it turns out.

Thanks again,

d

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Perhaps those Photos were created using a different Apple ID in which case you would have to log in with that Apple ID to delete them. From How to manage Apple ID Account under How to change an Apple ID on your iPhone or iPad:

Not many people know this, but it is possible to sign in and use multiple Apple IDs on an iPhone or iPad. You can log in and set up multiple Apple IDs on an iOS device from the Settings app and use them for different purposes like contacts, email, notes, bookmarks, etc. For example, you may have a personal Apple ID that you use with the App Store and iCloud but a different Apple ID for work purposes where you store your business or work contacts. You can set up two or more Apple IDs on an iPhone and iPad. Here’s how:

1. Launch the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Scroll down a bit and tap on Passwords & Accounts.
3. Tap Mail (or Contacts, Notes, Calendar) and tap Add Account.
4. Tap iCloud.
5. Enter the Apple ID email and password.
6. Select which services you want to enable for this Apple ID.

HP Compaq 6000 Pro SFF PC / Windows 10 Pro / 22H2
Intel®Core™2 “Wolfdale” E8400 3.0 GHz / 8.00 GB
HP ProDesk 400 G5 SFF PC / Windows 11 Pro / 23H2
Intel®Core™ “Coffee Lake” i3-8100 3.6 GHz / 16.00 GB

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Well WafreakinHOO!  This was the Jedi Magic I was looking for, and it was free (my kind of price). WCHS provided the link to EaseUS MobiMover (trial version).  No limit on deletions!  Can only move 10 files per day with the free version.  I was able to clean up the files I wanted to disappear in minutes.  (Why iTunes couldn’t be this easy is a mystery to me).  At any rate, thanks for providing a solution to a problem that has plagued me for months.  You kindness and assistance is very much appreciated.  Thanks as well to all who offered options that I certainly tried.

Best regards,

d

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dwallace115 wrote:

Well WafreakinHOO!  This was the Jedi Magic I was looking for, and it was free (my kind of price). WCHS provided the link to EaseUS MobiMover (trial version).  No limit on deletions!

Your welcome and I’m Drcard:)) – Dana:)) not, WCHS.

Also, you can transfer files between an iPhone and a Windows 10 PC using WiFi over your home network without using any app, but requires using the Files app on the iPhone. This does not have a limit on the number of files to transfer and is also free. I’ve attached the instructions of how to do this.

Wi-Fi-Sharing-Files-Between-Windows-PC-and-iPhone

HTH, Dana:))

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Sorry Dana.  I’m old, and don’t get the acronyms so many folks use on the site.  I really do appreciate the assistance.  Have a great day!

 

d

1 user thanked author for this post.

pmcjr6142

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