Posted in: Desktop software

Cloud storage comparison: Google Drive vs. Dropbox vs. SugarSync vs. SkyDrive vs. Box.net

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The cloud storage market is now more crowded than ever and the latest player is no other than the mighty Google. Having just launched its Drive cloud storage service, Google is already aiming at the top spot in the business.

Not so fast, Google – things just don’t work this way. There’s plenty of services to choose from already, so Drive will have to outdo them all to gain victory. And to help you get a better idea of the new service starting position, we have put four of the biggest names in the game side by side in a neat table.

Dropbox, SkyDrive, SugarSync and Box.net are the popular names, so they hardly need an introduction. The first of those, in particular, is the father of the cloud storage business as we know it, so we expect it to be particularly hard to beat. Box.net with its generous 50GB promos as well as the vast reach of SugarSync and Microsoft’s very own SkyDrive shouldn’t be underestimated either.

Here’s the comparison table, which should hopefully make it much easier for you to make up your mind which is best right now.

 
Google Drive
Dropbox
SugarSync
SkyDrive
Box.NET
Free space
5GB
2GB
5GB
7GB
5GB
Paid space
(monthly)
25GB – $2.49
100GB – $4.99
200 GB – $9.99
400 GB – $19.99
1000GB – $49.99
50GB – $9.99
100GB – $19.99
30GB – $4.99
60GB – $9.99
100GB – $14.99
250GB – $24.99
500GB – $39.99
20GB – $0.83
50GB – $2.08
100GB – $4.16
25GB – $9.99
50GB – $19.99
Desktop client
Windows
Mac OS X
-
Windows
Mac OS X
Linux
Windows
Mac OS X
-
Windows
Mac OS X
-
Windows (paid)
Mac OS X (paid)
-
Mobile app
iPad (soon)
iPhone (soon)
Android
-
-
-
-
Mobile website
iPad
iPhone
Android
-
-
BlackBerry
-
Mobile website
iPad
iPhone
Android
Windows Mobile
Symbian
BlackBerry
Kindle Fire
Mobile website
iPad
iPhone
-
Windows Phone
-
-
-
Mobile website
iPad
iPhone
Android
-
-
BlackBerry
-
Mobile website
Shared
folders
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Shared folders with permissions and password
Yes
No
Yes
No
Yes
File linking
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Folder linking
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Security
N/A
SSL AES-256 bit
encryption
SSL 128-bit AES encryption
SSL
SSL AES-256 bit
encryption
Free ways
to increase space
None
Referrals, up to 16GB
Referrals
Promos, up to 25GB
Promos, up to 50GB
Maximum file size
10GB
Unlimited
Unlimited
2GB
25MB (free)
1GB (paid)

So Google Drive does seem up to the challenge, but it will certainly be a tough fight. Which one are you siding with? Or do you simply use all of them to maximize the free storage?

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