There are various types of cloud storage services available, and all of them offers free plan, but their levels of storage and features vary. Moreover, they all offer users option to upgrades for more storage and enjoy more features, but you will need to pay for that.
For those who don’t know what cloud storage is, according to Wikipedia;
Cloud storage is a model of networked online storage where data is stored in virtualized pools of storage which are generally hosted by third parties. Hosting companies operate large data centers, and people who require their data to be hosted buy or lease storage capacity from them. The data center operators, in the background, virtualize the resources according to the requirements of the customer and expose them as storage pools, which the customers can themselves use to store files or data objects. Physically, the resource may span across multiple servers.The safety of the files depends upon the hosting websites.
Cloud storage services may be accessed through a web service application programming interface (API), a cloud storage gateway or through a Web-based user interface.
Before you proceed, check: Free File Hosting Websites
With the increasing numbers of cloud services available, you may be wondering which one could be right for you. I have compiled a list of the top 5 cloud services with their major features.
1.Google Drive
Since the inception of Google Drive in April of 2012, it has been serving as a file storage and synchronization. Google Drive automatically integrates with other Google tools like Docs, Google+ and Gmail. Google Drive gives all users 5 GB of cloud storage to start with, and if you opt for a paid version of Google Drive, your Gmail space will automatically be increased to 25 GB.
Click Here to access Google Drive Website
2. Apple iCloud
Apple iCloud offers free cloud storage of 5 GB, and the service is fully integrated into iOS &Mac OS X, iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch and Windows iCloud. Max file size allowed for free users is 25 MB, while the max file size allowed for paid users is 250 MB. For additional storage: 10 GB cost $20 per year, 20 GB cost $40 per while and 50 GB cost $100 per year.
Click Here to access Apple iCloud
3. Box
Box Inc. (formerly Box.net) is an online file sharing and Cloud content management service for enterprise companies. The company has adopted a freemium business model, and provides 5 GB of free storage for personal accounts. A mobile version of the service is available for Android, BlackBerry, iPhone, iPad, WebOS, and Windows Phone devices. The company is based in Los Altos, California.
Click Here to access Box Website
4. Microsoft SkyDrive
SkyDrive gives users remote file access, and it also provides users with the ability to create MS Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, Excel spreadsheets and OneNote notebooks directly in the cloud. You can also publicly share files, enable group editing and take advantage of the integrated Bing search in SkyDrive. SkyDrive comes with a 7GB free storage; approximate annual price for 20 GB is $10, while approximate annual price for 100 GB is $50. The maximum file size allowed is 2 GB.
Click Here to access Microsoft SkyDrive Website
5. MediaFire
MediaFire provides free users with 50 GB of cloud storage, with a limit of 200 MB per file. For extra storage: pro users get 250 GB of storage and 4GB of file size limit (at $4.50/month), while business users get 1000 GB of storage and 10 GB of file size limit (at $49/month).
Click Here to access MediaFire Website
Share your experience with any of these cloud storage services in the comment below.
Thanks for sharing this nice post. Google seems to be doing everything these days, it is not surprising that the Internet giant has developed online storage and synchronization.Now it becomes easy to save and share files through Google Gmail Drive.
nice info. thnks