Cloud storage has started becoming a bigger and bigger deal as of late. Especially with smartphones coming with just 16GB or 32GB of storage in some cases. Users need somewhere to store pictures, music, videos and other items. There are many cloud storage options available out there, but which are the best?
Dropbox
Probably the most popular cloud storage solution around, Dropbox has plenty of space for your needs. You start off with 2GB of storage for free, although that can be maxed out to 20GB by doing things like referring friends, liking their social media pages and such. Dropbox offers automatic upload for pictures on your smartphone or tablet as well. So you can backup all of your pictures without sharing them publicly.
Google Drive
Another popular one, and something that Google Drive has over its competition is the fact that files that are done in Google Docs do not count against your standard 15GB quota. Meaning you can create as many documents, spreadsheets and forms as you want in Google Docs. Google Drive also has some of the cheapest storage, with 1TB coming in at about $9.99/month.
Microsoft OneDrive
OneDrive also has Office support, however Office documents aren’t whitelisted from your storage quota. OneDrive, which was formerly SkyDrive, is also integrated very well with your Windows PC. So you can quickly edit documents that are on your PC from your phone, without needing to use remote desktop. Makes things very easy in the long run.
Mega
With Mega, you are able to store loads of files and content in the cloud. Making it a great choice for sharing files with others. Once more, Mega gives you 50GB of storage for free. Which for most people, that’s more than enough. Now this wouldn’t be ideal for storing your personal pictures and such, but it’s great for sharing large files.
Box
This is a service that a lot of companies actually use for sharing documents both within the company and to those outside of the company. Box has enterprise level security to keep all of your data safe. It also has a few great web apps available, including Microsoft Office. So through Box’s website, you can edit and create Microsoft Office documents.
Flickr
Flickr has been said to be the “Photographer’s social network” and that’s definitely true. But something that many people don’t know about Flickr is the fact that it allows you to store up to a terabyte of pictures for free, without making them public. Now of course, if you want too, you can share them and make them public, but that’s not necessary. 1TB of storage is quite a bit of space, especially for free.
Google Photos
With Google Photos you have unlimited storage. Google will backup your photos at “high quality” which is equivalent to 16MP, to their servers and there’s no storage quota there. However if you want to back them up at the original size, that will use up part of your 15GB of space that is used for other Google services like Drive and Gmail. Photos has all sorts of neat features inside, including automated collages, filters and much more.
Amazon Photos – Cloud Drive
This is a great option for those that are Amazon Prime members, as Amazon gives you unlimited storage for photos, documents and so much more. Those that aren’t Amazon Prime members, you can sign up for storage plans starting at $11.99/month, and you can also get 3 months free. Amazon’s Cloud Drive will automatically back up your photos, so you never have to think about it.
Copy
One of the smaller cloud storage options out there, Copy is also a great alternative to saving your data. Copy allows you to stream items that are in your Copy account to Chromecast. Something that you only see in the Google Drive and Photos app. This is great for those that store pictures and videos in their Copy account.
CM Backup
This is Cheetah Mobile, not CyanogenMod. With CM Backup, you get 5GB of storage for free, and it will backup everything for you. This includes your contacts, SMS, Call Logs, pictures, and anything else that may be on your smartphone. It’s great to use if you’re about to switch phones, as everything can be switched over pretty seamlessly.