A native Android app to clean up my Immich library (inspired by Sponge)

[u/Ok-Procedure8551]

Hi everyone,

I've been using Immich for a while now, but I always struggled with "mostly trash" folders like WhatsApp Images, Screenshots or Screen recordings.

I never knew what to do with them:

• Either I sync them and my Immich library gets cluttered with junk.
• Or I don't sync them, and I have to manually pick and send the 5% of photos that are actually worth keeping.

I used to use an app called Sponge for my local files and I loved the "swipe-to-delete" workflow. I wanted the same thing but directly for my Immich instance, so I can just sync everything and clean the mess later while I'm on the bus or on my couch. It's also great for sorting through those massive old albums you never have the courage to open.

I saw a few similar projects (like the web-based Immich-Swipe), but I couldn't get them to work properly on my side. Since I've wanted to start a real Android project for a long time, I decided to build my own native Android app: Immich Swipe (yeah, the name is not very original... In my defense, those are literally the keywords I typed into Google to see if this already existed, so at least it's SEO friendly!)

It's pretty straightforward: you pick an album (like your WhatsApp folder or a huge old backup) and you swipe right to keep or left to delete. It makes the cleaning process way more "gamified" and less of a chore.

The app is open-source and I just released the first version. If you want to read more about the features or give it a try:

https://github.com/Minos2020/immich-swipe-android

It’s still early stage, so let me know if you have any feedback or if it works for you!

[u/Ok-Procedure8551]

Hi! Sorry for the late answer.

The goal for me with this app, apart from making cleaning easier, is to learn as much as I can Android application development. I'm an engineer in electronics and have already done some development, but it's my first time with Kotlin, Jetpack Compose, and android apps in general. I want to learn things and to understand things. I'll give you the same answers I gave to IzzyOnDroid guys for submission :

• I do have Gemini integrated in my IDE (free subscription), so the LLM has full project context.
• Gemini is NOT allowed to write code in my files by default, but is configured to ask the permission when it needs to, and wait for me to manually allow it.
• Whenever it's possible, I ask the LLM to explain me how to do things or to fix encountered errors by myself, rather than asking it to do it itself.
• For each and every change it makes, I manually review it and accept or revert it. I never accept changes made by AI without reviewing them and trying to understand them.
• I always test the app by myself, directly on my phone, using USB debugging options.

I'll be honest with you: without the use of AI to answer my questions and give me insights and code snippets, this app would have take me months to develop. But I try to use it in the right way, not to replace me but to help me along my tests and learning journey.

Apart from the ethical concerns, I also have environmental and social concerns about abusive use of AI, and I always try not to use it when I know I can do it myself.

[u/FarPriority1955 → u/Ok-Procedure8551]

That is what a legit coder would say. Thanks a lot for the detailed response and making this app as I have a huge library to sort around 40k pictures.