Estimation Case: Sizing the Data Footprint of Media Shot on Pixel Phones

Estimate how much storage it would take to hold every photo and video that people have captured with Google's Pixel phones. Walk through your approach, state each assumption, and give a final figure with its units. ```hint Split the two media types Photos and videos differ widely in file size and in how often people create them. Estimate them separately, and decide early whether you want the total to date or a yearly amount. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Does "all" mean everything captured since the Pixel line launched, or the amount captured in a typical year? - Should the count include only shots from the Pixel camera, or also screenshots and media received through messaging apps? - Do we count everything ever captured, or only what owners keep after deleting? - Is the target the raw size of the files, or the storage a provider would actually provision, including backups and redundant copies? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A stated scope (time window, what counts as a Pixel photo or video, raw bytes versus provisioned storage) and an equation that breaks the total into devices, capture habits and file sizes. - Labeled, round-number assumptions for how many Pixel phones exist and how long they are used, and for photo and video habits and file sizes. - Arithmetic with consistent units and a final figure in sensible units. - Sanity checks against independent reference points, and a view of which assumption moves the answer most. - Adjustments such as deleted media, compression and redundant copies, ending in a range rather than false precision. ### Follow-up Questions - Which assumption moves your answer the most, and how would you get a better number for it? - How would you turn this into next year's capacity forecast for a cloud backup service, given that not every owner backs up? - If Pixel phones began recording higher-resolution video by default, how would your estimate change?