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OneDrive vs Dropbox vs Google Drive vs Box
What is Cloud Storage?
Cloud Storage is a method to store, supervise and retrieve your files from data stored on cloud servers. Sticking your files in the cloud is a convenient way of managing data without the fear of losing it. Though it’s not so familiar idea for large number of people, most of the active internet users are already using these cloud storage services. The stored files can be accessed from your phone, tablet, desktop or any other device with an internet connection.
Every cloud storage service gives you convincing offerings. But the question is which one to use?? Which one suits you the best?? Some of the popular cloud storage services are Dropbox, Google Drive, Mega, Copy, OneDrive, Box, and several other less popular ones.
Using any of these cloud storage services, you can store files from one device and retrieve it anytime from any device connected to internet. For example, you can store your photos from mobile and then retrieve it on even your desktop. Similarly, you can store videos from your desktop and then access them on your mobile. All you need is – these devices being connected to internet. You no more have to use pen drives or blue-tooth to transfer content between devices.
To unravel your excitement, I’ve delved and crafted a self-explanatory report by mentioning some lesser known facts of four such cloud storage services namely OneDrive, Dropbox, Google Drive, and Box. Take a good look and decide for yourself.
One Drive
Formerly called SkyDrive, One Drive comes as a built-in service in Windows 8 and higher versions and can be linked to any device operating on Windows platform. One special feature of OneDrive is an option called ‘Fetch files’ feature, through which you can access files of your PC from another system, even when they’re not in your OneDrive folder. It is one of the only cloud service which is capable of Windows phone integration, other than Dropbox. You can make your account secure by using TouchID. Though it’s slightly chaotic on Android platform it still works fine.
OneDrive offers 15GB of personal storage for free with another 5GB for referral system, so technically it tops out 20GB of free space. Subscription plans of One Drive are as follows: $1.99/month for 100 GB, $3.99/month for 200 GB and $6.99/month for 1 TB. It also makes it easier to share files with your colleagues by linking your OneDrive account to social networks and you’ve facility of setting permissions for individual user even in the free edition.
Dropbox
Dropbox is definitely one of the most reliable and disciplined cloud storage system because of its user friendly interface and simplicity. With over millions of users worldwide, it is one of the best preferred cloud storage service. It works perfectly well with Mac iOS, Android, Windows, and Linux. It is secured with a two-step verification process and has a lockdown option for its mobile app with a passcode. Dropbox name has almost become identical with cloud storage.
Dropbox offers you 2GB of free storage with an additional of 16GB storage obtained through referral system, where each addition gets 500MB with maximum of 32 referrals. Although it doesn’t have any file size limit for files being uploaded from Dropbox application on desktop or mobile app, it has a limit on Dropbox website and that’s 10GB. The subscription charges is $9.99/month for 1TB and $15/per/month for business usage.
Google Drive
The best thing about Google Drive is you don’t have to go through all those confirmation procedures for creating an account since your existing google account can be used for the same. In today’s Android savvy world, probably everyone has a google account. Google Drive is a collaboration of all the google features under one roof. Your Gmail can be attached to Google Drive for an easy access of any documents needed. The Drag and drop option in Google Drive makes it trouble-free to use. The Auto backup option for photos is available without the necessity of Google Photos app.
Google drive offers you 15GB of free storage and there’s no option of referral system to extend the free storage space. If your Gmail has already consumed enough space see to it that you don’t sync Gmail with Google Drive. For additional storage you will have to buy the subscription packages ranging from $1.99/month for 100GB to $299.99/month for 30TB. The file size limit is up to 1TB depending on the file type. If you’re affluent using Google services it is hard to debate against using Google Drive against any other service when is is offering such all-inclusive tools.
Another additional benefit of using Google Drive is that you can use Google Docs features such as Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides, etc. for free and with ease.
Box
Box is a business-focused service with a perpetual list of sharing and clandestineness features. Box is different from the rest of cloud storage services in the sense that if focuses more on business users. Box is more than a cloud storage service – in which it provides solutions such as Secure File Sharing, File Synchronization, Digital Asset Management, Document Management, FTP Alternative, etc.
You can set the privacy settings for files to be shared with specific group of your business people. Ample collaboration features are provided in Box, so that you along with your team can simultaneously work on a project together.
Box offers you 10GB of free storage, comparatively less than OneDrive and Google Drive. And it has limitations for the file size to 250MB in free edition. The upgraded storage plans are available at $11.50/month for 100GB with an increase in the file size limit to 5GB. For Business Users, the plans are available at $6 and $17 per month per user depending on the features provided in each plan.
Wrapping Up
To summarize the four cloud storage products in brief:
– If you are a Windows fan and use Windows devices in your day-to-day work, go for OneDrive
– If you want to have the ease of using cloud storage with simplicity, go for Dropbox
– If you are a Google fan and spend most of your time on Android ecosystem, go for Drive
– And finally, if you are planning to use cloud storage for your business purpose, give Box a try
– Also, if you are just looking to get a plenty of free storage space on internet, Google Drive and OneDrive are the best options
Comparison Chart
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