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:

1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.”
4. 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.

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. If you are using it, read on to find out what’s new and how you can now access your files without even using a computer.

DropBox 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.

Access

Dropbox started as a computer software and has evolved into something more. Over the last year, Dropbox has added an iPhone app that lets you access your files on the go. Setup takes less than 2 minutes (I just did it myself) and your files are instantly available. It’s like adding storage space to your iPhone or iPod touch and (as we mentioned before) it is FREE! There is currently no support for other smartphone devices, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Android support was added within the next year. In the mean time, you can still access your files via a web browser.

UPDATE: (4/05/2010) A recent blog post titled The Dropbox Android App! confirms our suspicions and warms our hearts.  Dropbox for Android may not be running on my G1 just yet, but “this app will be available for all flavors of Android within the next couple months.”

Dropbox is on your Desktop, in your Web Browser & on your iPhone!

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 3GB, 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.

UPDATE: (4/05/2010) News began to circulate last week that Dropbox has increased their referral program rewards and I just confirmed that users can now earn up to 8GB of additional storage by passing the word on to friends and family.  Pair that with the 2GB of FREE space provided to all “free users” and you can now max out your storage space at 10GB.

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 3GB 10GB of space, I won’t hesitate to pay for the Pro 50 plan.