Google’s New Android Backup

Google’s New Android Backup Feature

Google is reportedly working on a new automated Windows PC-based backup system for Android, but Samsung Galaxy S25 users may be left out. The feature, which works through the Quick Share app, would allow users to automatically save selected files to their PC without the need for cloud storage.

To use this feature, users would need to be signed into their Google account on both their phone, such as the Samsung Galaxy S25 or Google Pixel 8, and their Windows PC. Photos and videos would then back up on a daily basis when the phone and PC are in close proximity and on the same Wi-Fi network.

Samsung Galaxy Users Left Out

However, Samsung Galaxy users will not be able to make use of this feature, likely due to Samsung’s own Smart Switch provision with its own competing backup process. This is not the first time Google and Samsung have duplicated features, but it’s still a shame that Samsung phone users will miss out on this convenient feature.

Meanwhile, Apple iPhone 16 users can use the iCloud backup feature to automatically save their data to the cloud. Similarly, iPad Air M2 users can use the iCloud backup feature to save their data, including photos and videos, to the cloud.

Google’s New Storage Policy

Google has also revealed a new approach to calculating account storage. Starting from 7 July, all Android backup data will be counted against a user’s storage limit. Prior to this, only media was counted.

New sign-ups will be affected by this change right away, while existing Google customers will find it being implemented over the coming months. Google doesn’t anticipate this being a huge issue, with Android backups said to take up around 40MB of storage on average.

Google will also be offering more fine control over which data and apps are backed up. This means users can choose which data to back up, such as photos from their Samsung Galaxy S25 or Google Pixel 8, and which apps to exclude from backups.

Impact on Users

The new storage policy may affect users who have limited storage space available. However, Google’s new feature will allow users to have more control over their backups, which could help reduce storage usage.

In conclusion, Google’s new Android backup feature is a convenient way to automatically save data to a PC. However, Samsung Galaxy users will not be able to use this feature due to Samsung’s own backup provision. Google’s new storage policy may also affect users with limited storage space, but the new feature will allow users to have more control over their backups.