Dania Abdulhamid دانية عبد الحميد
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Google Photos backup · Understandability · 2022–2023

Backup overview

The full deck I presented to the cross-functional team and what we shipped. Names and internal data have been redacted.

Terminology

AB stands for Auto Backup.

There are two states a user can be in: Autobackup ON or Autobackup OFF.

A third state, AB-STOPPED, is when backup is on but has stopped running, for example when the user is out of storage.

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Backup overview — SPR, December 2022. Alongside the title, the Backup screen: a description of where photos are saved, a backup-in-progress row with thumbnails, and entry points for items that can’t be backed up and for finding a missing photo.
User problem
Who we were solving for
AB-on users have Auto Backup switched on, so new photos and videos are saved to their Google Account automatically. AB-off users do not, so anything on the device stays only on that device.
The user problem, stated as a need
Vision
Storyboard — the moment backup matters
Storyboard — checking whether you are covered
Storyboard — reassurance, and the decision to act
Vision and module tiers
M1 scope
What we wanted to learn in the first milestone
M1 scope — account particle and 'needs attention'
M1 — account particle
Audit: every title the backup row could display
Proposed improvements to the entry point
M1 — content
Today, initial concept, final proposal
Proposed direction and M1 modules
M1 direction, with the rationale for each element
M1 flow
Metrics and callouts
Success metrics
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