Have you actually tried *restoring* from backup?
I wouldn't touch Planet's software with 10-foot pole if it's something I'd consider critical.
My approach is to use SMSBackup to save my messaging data, and for photos and the like I just sync to a PC every now and then. (Or I could just sync directly with Google, but don't want to). Rest of this (e.g. layout of Nova Launcher) can be backed up when I change that once a year.