[docs] add home widgets documentation (#8629)

prateekmedia · web-flow · commit 1ea53c1418a2 · 2026-01-06T16:15:29.000+05:30
## Description

## Tests
diff --git a/docs/docs/.vitepress/sidebar.ts b/docs/docs/.vitepress/sidebar.ts
@@ -214,6 +214,10 @@ export const sidebar = [
                                 text: "Detect Text (OCR)",
                                 link: "/photos/features/utilities/detect-text",
                             },
+                            {
+                                text: "Home Widgets",
+                                link: "/photos/features/utilities/home-widgets",
+                            },
                             {
                                 text: "Notifications",
                                 link: "/photos/features/utilities/notifications",
diff --git a/docs/docs/photos/faq/advanced-features.md b/docs/docs/photos/faq/advanced-features.md
@@ -270,6 +270,80 @@ Notifications are currently only available on mobile apps. See the [Notification
 
 Open `Settings > General > Notifications` to enable or disable specific notification categories. All categories are enabled by default when you grant notification permission.
 
+## Home Widgets
+
+### How do I add a home widget? {#add-home-widget}
+
+**On iOS:**
+
+1. Long press on your home screen until apps start jiggling
+2. Tap the **+** button in the top left corner
+3. Search for "Ente" or scroll to find Ente Photos
+4. Choose the widget type (Memories, Albums, or People)
+5. Select your preferred widget size
+6. Tap **Add Widget**
+
+**On Android:**
+
+1. Long press on an empty area of your home screen
+2. Tap **Widgets**
+3. Find and expand **Ente Photos**
+4. Long press your desired widget and drag it to your home screen
+
+Learn more in the [Home Widgets guide](/photos/features/utilities/home-widgets).
+
+### How do I configure which albums appear on my widget? {#configure-widget-albums}
+
+Open `Settings > General > Home widget > Albums widget` in the Ente app.
+
+From here, you can select which albums to display. By default, the **Favorites** album is selected. You can select multiple albums to show more variety on your home screen.
+
+Learn more in the [Home Widgets guide](/photos/features/utilities/home-widgets#configuring-the-albums-widget).
+
+### Why does the People widget require face recognition? {#people-widget-face-recognition}
+
+The People widget displays photos of specific people from your library. To identify people in your photos, Ente needs to use face recognition, which is part of the machine learning features.
+
+To use the People widget:
+
+1. Enable face recognition in `Settings > General > Advanced > Machine learning`
+2. Wait for face indexing to complete
+3. Open `Settings > General > Home widget > People widget` to select people
+
+Learn more about [Face recognition](/photos/features/search-and-discovery/face-recognition).
+
+### How often do widgets refresh? {#widget-refresh-rate}
+
+Widgets automatically refresh approximately every **15 minutes**. This refresh happens in the background by the operating system, so you'll see different photos throughout the day without manual intervention.
+
+Opening the Ente app also triggers a widget sync, which can update your widgets sooner.
+
+### Widget not showing photos {#widget-not-showing-photos}
+
+If your widget appears blank or isn't showing photos:
+
+1. **Open the Ente app** and wait for it to sync completely
+2. **Check your configuration** - ensure you have photos in the configured albums or people
+3. **Verify storage** - make sure your device has enough storage for widget cache
+4. **Remove and re-add the widget** to force a refresh
+5. **Check background app refresh** - ensure Ente is allowed to refresh in the background in your device settings
+
+If the People widget shows no options, make sure face recognition is enabled and has finished indexing your photos.
+
+### What types of memories appear in the Memories widget? {#memories-widget-types}
+
+The Memories widget can display three types of memories:
+
+- **On This Day**: Photos from the same date in previous years
+- **Past Years**: Memories from past years
+- **Smart Memories**: AI-curated memorable moments
+
+You can toggle which memory types appear by opening `Settings > General > Home widget > Memories widget`.
+
+### Are widgets available on desktop or web? {#widgets-platform-availability}
+
+No, home widgets are only available on mobile apps (iOS and Android). Desktop apps and web browsers do not support home screen widgets.
+
 ## Other Advanced Features
 
 ### Can I access Ente from multiple browsers? {#multiple-browsers}
diff --git a/docs/docs/photos/features/utilities/home-widgets.md b/docs/docs/photos/features/utilities/home-widgets.md
@@ -0,0 +1,159 @@
+---
+title: Home Widgets
+description: Add beautiful photo widgets to your phone's home screen with Ente Photos
+---
+
+# Home Widgets
+
+Ente Photos offers home screen widgets that display your photos directly on your phone's home screen. Widgets automatically refresh with new photos from your library, bringing your memories to life throughout the day.
+
+> **Note**: Home widgets are available on mobile apps only (iOS and Android).
+
+## Widget Types
+
+Ente provides three types of home screen widgets:
+
+### Memories Widget
+
+Displays photos from your memories, including:
+
+- **On This Day**: Photos from the same date in previous years
+- **Past Years**: Memories from past years
+- **Smart Memories**: AI-curated memorable moments
+
+The Memories widget automatically rotates through your memories, surfacing nostalgic moments right on your home screen.
+
+### Albums Widget
+
+Shows photos from your selected albums. By default, it displays photos from your **Favorites** album, but you can customize which albums to include.
+
+### People Widget
+
+Displays photos featuring selected people from your library. This widget helps you keep photos of your loved ones front and center.
+
+**Requirement**: The People widget requires [face recognition](/photos/features/search-and-discovery/face-recognition) to be enabled. You must first enable machine learning and allow face recognition to detect and group people in your photos.
+
+## Adding Widgets to Your Home Screen
+
+### On iOS
+
+1. Long press on your home screen until apps start jiggling
+2. Tap the **+** button in the top left corner
+3. Search for "Ente" or scroll to find Ente Photos
+4. Choose the widget type (Memories, Albums, or People)
+5. Select your preferred widget size
+6. Tap **Add Widget**
+7. Position the widget and tap **Done**
+
+### On Android
+
+1. Long press on an empty area of your home screen
+2. Tap **Widgets**
+3. Find and expand **Ente Photos**
+4. Long press your desired widget and drag it to your home screen
+5. Resize the widget if needed
+
+## Configuring Widgets
+
+### Widget Settings
+
+Open `Settings > General > Home widget` in the Ente app to configure your widgets.
+
+### Configuring the Albums Widget
+
+1. Open `Settings > General > Home widget > Albums widget`
+2. Select which albums you want to display on your home screen
+3. By default, the **Favorites** album is selected
+4. You can select multiple albums to include more variety
+
+### Configuring the People Widget
+
+1. Open `Settings > General > Home widget > People widget`
+2. Select which people you want to feature
+3. Only people detected by face recognition will appear as options
+
+> **Note**: You must enable [face recognition](/photos/features/search-and-discovery/face-recognition) before configuring the People widget.
+
+### Configuring the Memories Widget
+
+1. Open `Settings > General > Home widget > Memories widget`
+2. Toggle which memory types to include:
+    - **On This Day**: Photos from this date in previous years
+    - **Past Years**: Yearly memories
+    - **Smart Memories**: AI-curated memorable moments
+
+## How Widgets Work
+
+### Data Synchronization
+
+Widgets sync photos from your Ente library to your device's widget storage:
+
+1. The app selects photos based on your widget configuration
+2. Thumbnails are rendered and cached locally (512px resolution)
+3. Up to 50 photos are cached per widget type
+4. Widgets read from this local cache to display photos
+
+### Automatic Refresh
+
+Widgets automatically refresh approximately every **15 minutes** to display new photos. The refresh happens in the background, so you'll see different photos throughout the day without any manual intervention.
+
+### Tapping Widgets
+
+When you tap a photo on a widget:
+
+- The Ente app opens directly to that photo
+- For Memories widgets, you'll see the memory collection
+- For Albums widgets, you'll see the photo in its album context
+- For People widgets, you'll see photos of that person
+
+## Tips for Best Experience
+
+### Ensure Photos Are Backed Up
+
+Widgets display photos that are backed up to Ente. Make sure your photos are synced for the best widget experience.
+
+### Enable Face Recognition Early
+
+If you want to use the People widget, enable face recognition in advance so the app can detect and group faces in your photos.
+
+Open `Settings > General > Advanced > Machine learning` and enable face recognition.
+
+### Keep the App Updated
+
+Widget improvements are released regularly. Keep the Ente app updated for the best performance and new features.
+
+### Add Favorite Photos
+
+The Albums widget defaults to your Favorites album. Add photos to Favorites by tapping the heart icon on any photo. This ensures your most cherished photos appear on your home screen.
+
+## Platform Availability
+
+| Platform    | Home Widgets     |
+| ----------- | ---------------- |
+| iOS app     | ✅ Supported     |
+| Android app | ✅ Supported     |
+| Desktop app | ❌ Not available |
+| Web browser | ❌ Not available |
+
+## Privacy and Security
+
+Home widgets maintain Ente's privacy standards:
+
+- **Local storage**: Widget images are stored locally on your device
+- **Encrypted sync**: Data synced from Ente servers is end-to-end encrypted
+- **No external access**: Widget data is only accessible by the Ente app and system widget framework
+- **Secure deep links**: Tapping widgets uses secure internal links to open photos
+
+## Related FAQs
+
+- [How do I add a home widget?](/photos/faq/advanced-features#add-home-widget)
+- [How do I configure which albums appear on my widget?](/photos/faq/advanced-features#configure-widget-albums)
+- [Why does the People widget require face recognition?](/photos/faq/advanced-features#people-widget-face-recognition)
+- [How often do widgets refresh?](/photos/faq/advanced-features#widget-refresh-rate)
+- [Widget not showing photos](/photos/faq/advanced-features#widget-not-showing-photos)
+
+## Related Topics
+
+- [Face recognition guide](/photos/features/search-and-discovery/face-recognition)
+- [Machine learning guide](/photos/features/search-and-discovery/machine-learning)
+- [Notifications](/photos/features/utilities/notifications)
