by Jeffrey Walker
| Jun 05, 2014
Cloud storage has become an integral way for defining and managing our digital lives. More and more we are juggling multiple devices whether a laptop or desktop at work, a smartphone on the subway, or a tablet at home – and so we’ve come to rely on the ability to post our content into the cloud. Businesses have also gotten on the cloud storage bandwagon and are readily observing the benefits of giving employees access to their content when, where, and how they need it. Even slower-moving enterprises have come around to seeing that security is robust in the cloud.
With all the focus on the cloud of late, we thought it’d be useful to take a look at some of the top players out there. Whether you’re a small business leader and need to provide cloud storage for your organization, or else a startup offering the next generation revolutionary app – you’re going to demand great storage capabilities “in the cloud.” As you go about your business decisions, give consideration to the following 5 solutions, which we consider to be top players in this market. Really, there are no surprises here!
Google Drive: Google Drive is easily one of the best known and easily accessible cloud storage solutions available. And since we all leverage Google services in one way, shape, or fashion, Gdrive becomes a natural extension to our Google-ized lives. For example, Gmail Users no longer need to upload lengthy email attachments. Just send a link from Google Drive in Gmail and everyone has the same file and version. GDrive works with PCs, iPhones, iPads, and Android devices. And Google is generous with space by giving 15GB of storage space for free to first time registrants (up from the 5GB when it was introduced 2 years ago). Afterwards, it scales up at a reasonable rate with 1TB at 10 U.S. dollars a month and on up to 30TB at $300.
OneDrive: Previously known as SkyDrive, this solution is Microsoft’s rebranded answer to the cloud storage market. And it’s a sleek answer at that. OneDrive really provides a great way to manage and store all your documents within the Microsoft ecosystem of tools that we’ve all grown to rely upon over the years. In addition to personal cloud storage, Microsoft offers managed business storage through its OneDrive for Business solution. OneDrive is available for Android, iOS, Windows 8, and Windows Phone devices, and newcomers get 7GB of free space.
Box: If your strong suite is business and enterprise applications then please sit up and take notice here. Box offers 3 account types: personal, business, and enterprise. Though not as popular in the personal cloud market, Box has since its inception in 2005 steadily focused on the business and enterprise side of the house . . . and with great success. The platform offers up to 50GB of free storage on its business accounts and 10GB for personal usage. Box can also easily connect to the leading SaaS applications your organization already uses such as Salesforce, NetSuite, and Google Apps. You can integrate Box into your existing IT infrastructure or custom build apps powered by Box for whatever solutions your business needs. If your organization’s top concern is scalability and security then Box is your solution.
Dropbox: Founded in 2007, Dropbox was the platform that really made cloud storage popular. The firm has kept up its reputation by offering an extensive network of support for nearly every operating system, both desktop and mobile, along with a vast third-party developer that uses its open APIs to build great services on top of Dropbox. The extensive cross-platform versatility and networking is what makes Dropbox the first choice for many. And it’s also one of the few solutions to offer clients for Linux and Blackberry along with the usual standards – Android, iOS, and Windows.
SugarSync: While not as popular as some of its counter-parts, SugarSync is a strong and innovative player in the cloud storage market. The platform specializes in making the synchronization of files across computers and other devices easy and intuitive. Users have the option to pick and choose which files are backed up, or they can set things to save automatically when changes are made. SugarSync also keeps an impressive revision history for each of your files and lets the user share, lock down, or password protect individual files on the web or on the desktop. Support is offered for a wide range of systems, including Android, BlackBerry OS, iOS, Mac OS X, Samsung SmartTV, Symbian, Windows, and Windows Mobile.
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