Google Photos testing ‘Collections’ redesign that buries your library

Abner Li | May 8 2024 - 7:20 pm PT

Google Photos is working on a redesign of the Library tab on Android that renames it to “Collections.” In recent weeks, Google has been testing this new UI with more users and the reaction is not particularly positive.

From what we previously enabled, the Collections tab still retains the top shortcuts for Favorites, Utilities, Archive, and Trash. However, the “Photos on device” carousel and reverse-chronological grid of cloud albums have been removed.

There is now just a grid with automatically generated groupings for People (including pets), On this device, Albums, Documents, and Places.

To access local folders, you have to first open “On this device” to get a grid or list view. The latter is a nice option and pretty compact. At the moment, you can just start scrolling, with recently updated collections — like Screenshots and Downloads — appearing after the permanent “Camera” shortcut.

Meanwhile, accessing backed-up Albums also now involves another step. The auto-generated People and Documents folders appear to be from the Search tab.

Google has been attempting to revamp the Library since 2022, but pulled back on a design — seen below — after announcing it and a limited rollout.

We’ve seen a handful of reports in recent weeks, including a new one today, about the Library replacement going live for Google Photos users on Android. However, Collections still appears to be in testing given the limited availability.

This will hopefully let Google incorporate user feedback or serve as an indicator to go back to the drawing board. The current design offers a good balance and aligns with people’s expectations for a library. The auto-grouping albums are useful but arguably make more sense in Search.