- A timeline feature has been spotted for Google Photos backups
- Currently, the feature is not present in the app
- It can give users more control over when backups are able to run
For many users on both Android and iOS, Google Photos will be the app of choice for backing up photos and videos to the cloud, and now it looks like those users will have more control over how backups are actually done.
As spotted Robot bodyThe latest version of Google Photos for Android includes a hidden icon indicating a revamp of the backup settings page within the app, to make it compatible with the Expressive UI elements introduced with Android 16.
There’s also a new feature mentioned: Backup Schedule. There’s no information on what this is or how it works, but it looks like you’ll be able to choose when to sync your files to the cloud for safekeeping.
You may be able to run backups on a daily or weekly schedule, for example, or you may be able to specify certain times when backups are not performed (for example, if you have limited Internet access, you may want to pause backups).
almost
The way it currently works is that when you turn on automatic backups in Google Photos, your photos and videos are then synced when there’s an internet connection — although you can set this to only happen on Wi-Fi (not cellular) connections.
That’s really all the customization you get – automatic backups are either on or off (you can turn on backups manually as well). Power users will no doubt welcome some additional options for actually managing when backups run.
Although the icon for this is visible within the Google Photos app, if you look carefully, it is currently greyed out. It’s not clear when this feature might be released, but if preparations are made, it will likely be sooner rather than later.
Google should give us more information when it’s published as well. In the meantime, look for updates to the look of the Google Photos for Android backup settings page — changes are on the way.
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