Do you have a favorite band that you just love to follow? You know, the kind of rock stars that have you waiting in line for tickets, buying actual albums in person and joining fan clubs. For you “non-music” people, maybe you have a favorite actor, author, athlete, etc. You just can’t wait for their next appearance or release. In my world (the world of computers and gadgets) Dropbox is that rock star!!
I have written about Dropbox repeatedly and used their product religiously since a good friend introduced me to the service. If you haven’t already been introduced, let me the one to tell you all about it (see Introduction below). For those of you who are already fans, this week’s news was like getting a new double-album and a FREE concert. You veterans can jump on down to the WOW! section to see the latest from our rock stars.
Introduction
JumpstartMyPC.com was started to help PC users get the most out of their computer and no product exemplifies this idea like Dropbox! Dropbox is a file-syncing, file sharing, online backup tool that you can access from just about anywhere and you can start using it for FREE! I have written about this product many times, shared it with clients, friends and family and I use it myself, every single day. If you aren’t using it yet, you are in for a real treat.
Dropox is a storage application and service operated by Evenflow, Inc. The service enables users to store and sync files online and between computers. There are many great features to this product, but best of all IT IS FREE. Click below and watch the video (created by the folks at CommonCraft) to see for yourself.
Features
A complete feature list is available on the Dropbox web site, but we have a few highlights for you:
- File Syncing – Start with 2GB of storage for free and synchronize any file type to as many computers/devices as you want. Within seconds of adding a file to your Dropbox, it is synced to any and every computer you have installed Dropbox on.
- File Sharing – Want to share files with friends and family but aren’t sure how? If you can right-click, you can use Dropbox to send anyone a link to a file. Create a shared area for pictures, movies or even work documents.
- Online Backup – Your files are stored on the Dropbox servers, so if your computer crashes or you accidentally delete it locally, your file (and previous versions) are still available.
- Security – Without going into a lot of technical jargon, your files are secure. User names and passwords are required to access any files and all of the transmissions of your data are encrypted.
Pricing
Getting started with Dropbox is FREE and they start you off with 2GB of space. You can refer friends, family and colleagues to increase this space up to 10GB, which is adequate for most users. To give you some perspective, I use Dropbox for JumpstartMyPC every day. I’ve been storing blogs, invoices, install files, images, etc. for 7 months now and haven’t even used 30% of the 3GB provided to me.
If, or when, you feel that you need more space, you can sign up for the Pro 50 ($9.99/mth) or Pro 100 ($19.99/mth) account. Yearly plans are also available and you can save some cash by paying for the year in advance. Although the pricing is fair, it is my hope that pressure from similar services and an upcoming Google storage offer will cause the Dropbox folks to lower that pricing a bit. That being said, if I fill up my 10GB of space, I won’t hesitate to pay for the Pro 50 plan.
WOW!
As if the feature set and applications already released by the folks at the recently upgraded Dropbox headquarters weren’t enough, we were presented with several fantastic bits of news this week:
- The official Android app is here – YES!!! I can now access all of my Dropbox files on my G1. Android users (and there are a lot of us) can now have our files with us everywhere we go. It’s like having a tiny briefcase in our phone.
- Dropbox has an iPad app – WHAT??? How did you do that so quickly. I haven’t been able to get a hands-on with the iPad yet, but some great screen shots have surfaced of the new app at work and it looks great.
- Mobile API for “Dropbox Anywhere” – Developers can now get in on the fun. According to cnet news, Dropbox “has worked with a number of developers to integrate their apps into the new data pipeline… All of these apps are able to tap into a user’s Dropbox storage to fetch data, and save it back without needing to use any of that device’s local data.”
- Blackberry on the Way – Only listed as “quite soon,” the imminent release of the Blackberry app for Dropbox is on the horizon. Last time a “coming soon” was announced (Android app), it took exactly one month for Dropbox to deploy the app.
Whether you are a Dropbox user currently or not, you can see that Dropbox is starting to turn up everywhere. For those of you who need files on the go, anywhere at anytime, the one choice in cloud storage is becoming quite obvious. Better start populating your Dropbox now so you’ll be ready for the revolution.
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Tags: Android, app, Blackberry, cloud, Dropbox, file sharing, file syncing, folder, FREE, iPad, iPhone, Mobile, Online, Security, share, Storage
