system_asset_picker #

A modern Flutter plugin that leverages Android's native Photo Picker UI to select images and videos without requiring storage permissions. This plugin provides a clean, system-native experience that complies with Play Store guidelines while offering powerful media selection capabilities.

🌟 Features #

• ✅ No Storage Permissions Required - Uses Android's built-in Photo Picker (Android 11+) and scoped storage
• 🎨 Native Photo Picker UI - Beautiful, system-native gallery interface
• 📸 Single & Multiple Image Selection - Pick one or many images with customizable limits
• 🎥 Video Selection with Size Limits - Pick videos with configurable size restrictions
• 🔄 Combined Media Selection - Select both images and videos together
• 📷 Camera Support - Direct camera access for capturing new photos/videos
• 🚀 Play Store Compliant - No broad storage permissions needed
• ⚡ Performant - Efficient handling of large media files

🎯 Why This Package? #

Popular packages like image_picker and file_picker have limitations:

• They often require READ_MEDIA_IMAGES and READ_MEDIA_VIDEO permissions
• Play Store may reject apps using these permissions without "broad usage" justification
• They don't provide the modern, native Photo Picker UI
• Limited control over video size restrictions

system_asset_picker solves all these issues while providing a superior user experience.

📋 Requirements #

• Minimum SDK: Android API 21 (Android 5.0)
• Recommended: Android API 30+ (Android 11+) for full Photo Picker support
• Flutter: 2.5.0 or higher

🚀 Installation #

Add this to your pubspec.yaml:

dependencies:
  system_asset_picker: ^1.0.0

Then run:

flutter pub get

📱 Platform Setup #

Android #

Update your android/app/build.gradle:

android {
    compileSdkVersion 34 // or higher
    
    defaultConfig {
        minSdkVersion 21
        targetSdkVersion 34
    }
}

No permissions required in AndroidManifest.xml! 🎉

The plugin automatically handles scoped storage and Photo Picker access.

💻 Usage #

Import the Package #

import 'package:system_asset_picker/system_asset_picker.dart';

Check Photo Picker Availability #

bool isAvailable = await SystemAssetPicker.isPhotoPickerAvailable();
if (isAvailable) {
  print('Photo Picker is available on this device');
}

Pick a Single Image #

// From gallery
XFile? image = await SystemAssetPicker.pickImage();

// From camera
XFile? image = await SystemAssetPicker.pickImage(
  source: ImageSource.camera
);

if (image != null) {
  print('Selected image: ${image.path}');
}

Pick Multiple Images #

List<String> imagePaths = await SystemAssetPicker.pickMultipleImages(
  maxItems: 10, // Maximum number of images
);

print('Selected ${imagePaths.length} images');

Pick a Single Video #

// From gallery
XFile? video = await SystemAssetPicker.pickVideo();

// From camera
XFile? video = await SystemAssetPicker.pickVideo(
  source: ImageSource.camera
);

if (video != null) {
  print('Selected video: ${video.path}');
}

Pick Multiple Videos with Size Limit #

List<String> videoPaths = await SystemAssetPicker.pickMultipleVideos(
  maxItems: 5,           // Maximum number of videos
  maxVideoSizeMB: 50,    // Maximum size per video in MB
);

print('Selected ${videoPaths.length} videos');

Pick Images and Videos Together #

List<String> mediaPaths = await SystemAssetPicker.pickImagesAndVideos(
  maxItems: 10,          // Maximum total items
  maxVideoSizeMB: 100,   // Maximum size per video in MB
);

// Process mixed media
for (String path in mediaPaths) {
  if (path.toLowerCase().endsWith('.mp4') || 
      path.toLowerCase().endsWith('.mov')) {
    print('Video: $path');
  } else {
    print('Image: $path');
  }
}

📖 Complete Example #

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:system_asset_picker/system_asset_picker.dart';
import 'dart:io';

class MediaPickerScreen extends StatefulWidget {
  @override
  _MediaPickerScreenState createState() => _MediaPickerScreenState();
}

class _MediaPickerScreenState extends State<MediaPickerScreen> {
  List<String> _selectedMedia = [];

  Future<void> _pickMedia() async {
    try {
      final paths = await SystemAssetPicker.pickImagesAndVideos(
        maxItems: 10,
        maxVideoSizeMB: 50,
      );
      
      setState(() {
        _selectedMedia = paths;
      });
      
      ScaffoldMessenger.of(context).showSnackBar(
        SnackBar(content: Text('Selected ${paths.length} items')),
      );
    } catch (e) {
      ScaffoldMessenger.of(context).showSnackBar(
        SnackBar(content: Text('Error: $e')),
      );
    }
  }

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Scaffold(
      appBar: AppBar(title: Text('Media Picker')),
      body: Column(
        children: [
          ElevatedButton(
            onPressed: _pickMedia,
            child: Text('Pick Images & Videos'),
          ),
          Expanded(
            child: GridView.builder(
              gridDelegate: SliverGridDelegateWithFixedCrossAxisCount(
                crossAxisCount: 3,
                crossAxisSpacing: 4,
                mainAxisSpacing: 4,
              ),
              itemCount: _selectedMedia.length,
              itemBuilder: (context, index) {
                return Image.file(
                  File(_selectedMedia[index]),
                  fit: BoxFit.cover,
                );
              },
            ),
          ),
        ],
      ),
    );
  }
}

🎨 API Reference #

SystemAssetPicker #

Parameters #

• maxItems: Maximum number of items that can be selected
• maxVideoSizeMB: Maximum size per video in megabytes (default: 100MB)
• source: ImageSource.gallery or ImageSource.camera (default: gallery)

🔒 Privacy & Permissions #

This plugin is designed with privacy in mind:

• ✅ No READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE permission needed
• ✅ No READ_MEDIA_IMAGES permission needed
• ✅ No READ_MEDIA_VIDEO permission needed
• ✅ Uses Android's scoped storage and Photo Picker APIs
• ✅ Fully compliant with Google Play Store policies

The plugin only accesses files that the user explicitly selects through the system UI.

📊 Supported Android Versions #

⚠️ Limitations #

• Photo Picker UI is only available on Android 11+ (API 30+)
• On older Android versions, a basic file picker is used
• Videos exceeding the size limit will be filtered out with a toast notification
• Camera functionality requires camera hardware on the device

🐛 Troubleshooting #

Photo Picker Not Showing #

Problem: Photo Picker doesn't appear on device

Solution: Ensure your device is running Android 11+ (API 30+). Check availability:

bool available = await SystemAssetPicker.isPhotoPickerAvailable();

Video Size Limit Not Working #

Problem: Large videos are not being filtered

Solution: Ensure you're passing maxVideoSizeMB parameter:

await SystemAssetPicker.pickMultipleVideos(
  maxItems: 5,
  maxVideoSizeMB: 50, // Add this parameter
);

Images Not Displaying #

Problem: Selected images show error icon

Solution: Verify file paths are accessible and files exist:

for (String path in paths) {
  final file = File(path);
  if (await file.exists()) {
    print('File exists: $path');
  }
}

🤝 Contributing #

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request. For major changes, please open an issue first to discuss what you would like to change.

📄 License #

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

💬 Support #

If you find this package helpful, please:

• ⭐ Star the repository
• 🐛 Report issues on GitHub
• 💡 Suggest new features
• 📢 Share with other developers

🔗 Links #

• Package on pub.dev
• GitHub Repository
• Issue Tracker
• Changelog

👨‍💻 Author #

Created and maintained by [Your Name]

Made with ❤️ for the Flutter community