Data storage is fast becoming a vital part of any successful business. But buying devices with enough memory to store all the necessary documents can be pricey – which is why so many businesses are now turning to cloud storage systems for efficient data usage.
With so many choices when it comes to cloud data, it can be tricky to decide on just one. Syntax IT Support London has put together a list at some of the best cloud storage solutions currently available to you and your business.
Dropbox is arguably the most well-known storage system available, and there are many reasons why it deserves that recognition. For starters, it’s the only system that is also available on Linux and Blackberry, as well as the usual Windows, Mac OS X, Android and iOS. This makes it accessible to pretty much anybody, no matter what device you use.
Another useful factor of Dropbox is that it has an official smartphone app which is extremely easy to use, so even your most technophobic employees can get the hang of it. Dropbox also backs up any changes you make to documents for thirty days, giving you plenty of time to change your mind on any edits.
You can also be sure that your content is secure with Dropbox, which is a big plus in cloud storage. Dropbox has a two-step authentication security process, so only you can access your company data.
The free basic account comes with 2GB of data, or you can upgrade to 1TB for £7.99.
Microsoft Onedrive
Up until this year Onedrive was quite possibly the best storage system available. Unfortunately some changes in 2016 brought the quality down a little, but it’s still worth considering.
Before the changes, the basic account offered a massive 15GB of free storage, and if you signed up to Microsoft Office 365, that jumped up to unlimited storage. That’s right, unlimited. Sadly this has now changed due to some users apparently abusing this privilege. Now, basic account users are given 5GB of free data, whilst Office 365 users get 1TB. This is disappointing, but still puts it roughly on par with Dropbox’s numbers.
One plus of using Onedrive is that you can link it to your social media, making it even easier to share files between devices.
Google Drive
Google Drive is the most popular storage system that no one knows about. Let me explain. Drive is currently at the heart of pretty much every service Google has to offer. If you use Gmail, Google Calendar, or even have a YouTube account, then you already have a Google Drive account by default.
With Google Drive, you get a whopping 15GB of free storage data when you create a Google account, meaning a lot of you probably already have this storage without realising you were signed up. Another great thing about Drive is its selective sync, meaning you can choose which files to sync on each PC or laptop.
Mega
By far the least well-known of the four, but quite possibly also the best, Mega is a New Zealand based company which launched back in 2013. The service you receive from Mega is incredibly fast, and it’s easy to invite friends to join too.
Mega is also extremely safe and secure. Everything you put into Mega becomes encrypted and only you hold the encryption key. This means that even Mega itself can’t access the files you store there – only you.
The standard free package Mega offers comes with – wait for it – 50GB of storage space. This is much larger than any of the better-known names. All of these systems are good, but it’s worth shopping around some of the more obscure ones like Mega to find some great deals.
