Google explains Android M’s new Auto Backup for Apps feature

Auto Backup for Apps is baked into Android M. Photo: Google.

Auto Backup for Apps is baked into Android M. Photo: Google.

As an Android user who’s always switching devices, one of my biggest complaints is the lack of a built-in app backup feature. Lollipop and previous versions of Android don’t carry any of your app data over to your new device, so you have to start from scratch.

Fortunately, that’s going to change this fall when Google rolls out Android M, which has a new Auto Backup for Apps feature. The search giant explains it all in the video below.

Auto Backup for Apps works a lot like Apple’s iCloud Backup feature on iOS devices; it uploads all of your app data to your Google account, then syncs it when you restore your device or setup a new one, or after flashing a new ROM.

Backups run once a day, and only when your device is charging and connected to a Wi-Fi network. All of your data is encrypted and saved to your Google Drive account, however, app backup data is not taken out of your Drive data quota.

In addition, it doesn’t matter where your app came from — those downloaded from Google Play, third-party app stores, and even side-loaded manually will be backed up. There is just one catch: App backups are limited to 25MB per app.

Google reveals more about Auto Backup for Apps in the video below:

App backup will be available in Android M, which makes its public debut this fall.