To me, the real issue is that no other photo app can get close to iCloud synching. I've tried Dropbox, Google Photos, et al - but none of them can sync reliably

To me, the real issue is that no other photo app can get close to iCloud synching. I've tried Dropbox, Google Photos, et al - but none of them can sync reliably - and it's not their fault as far as I can see. iCloud, for me, syncs photos well - I then run Google Photos on my MBP to sync back to Google - but it's a half-assed solution. The best solution would be allowing photo apps to upload in the background without being brought to the foreground on the iPhone, but I don't see Apple doing this. It's really the only thing I miss from having an Android phone.