We are living in cloud computing era where we don’t need to carry memory device to transfer data from one device to another. With the data storage and sync applications like Dropbox, we can save, open, browse and manage data from anywhere. If you are a regular reader of this blog, then you must have gone through some tips related to Dropbox which offers 2 GB of data storage for free. Few days ago, Dropbox faced an alarming upgrade error with some security issue and people started looking for alternative for this awesome platform. I am not saying that Dropbox is a vulnerable system as this type of issue may come to any web product and if we want to use this type of applications, we should follow good practices like changing password on regular interval and by not using these applications from unreliable systems.
Now if you are looking for an alternative or Dropbox like application with more storage, then you must try Pogoplug. Currently it is offering 5GB of free data storage with desktop sync and mobile sync facilities. You can access the data or even can upload the same from desktop, laptop, mobile devices like Android and iPhone with their apps.
Once you will login to the Pogoplug dashboard, you will find similar interface as Dropbox where you get option to upload files and manage them. Here you can see more tabs as Movies, Pictures, Files etc. as this application can differentiate between the uploaded files and keep them organized in the kind of tab where those files belong.
For example, a JPEG file will be also accessible from Pictures tab where you can play a slideshow with selected pictures. Similarly, the WMV file will also be available in Movies tab where you can play that online or stream the same from other devices as well. You can create a folder and share the same with others by providing the email ID Or you can share with everyone by getting an exclusive URL for that folder or file. Application will give you a link as http://ppl.ug/xxxxxxxxxxx/ where xxxxxxxxxxx is an alphanumeric value for your shared folder or file.
The Pogoplug desktop software is having capabilities like showing the MP3 files in well-organized manner sorted on basis of Artist, Album etc. You can drag and drop the files to upload the cloud server and then access the same from anywhere.
Pogoplug Desktop Software (Drag and Drop to Upload)
You can check the used and available space in desktop software as well from Files ==> Preference menu. There it will show you the used space and available space in GB.
Pogoplug Mobile applications are free to install. You can get the Android as well as iOS app of this application from respective market. I tried the Android one and it looks good. You get option to either upload the files manually or you can choose auto upload feature to upload the pictures and videos captured by phone automatically to Pogoplug cloud server. I would not recommend to select the auto upload option as that may upload the unwanted pictures and bulky videos which can consume the free storage limit of 5GB. Here are some screenshots taken from Android App of Pogoplug.
Pogoplug on Android Mobile Phone
More Cloud Storage Options
If you are looking for more cloud storage options, then you must try Windows Live SkyDrive which is offering 25GB of free storage with 100 MB limit for individual files. Another option is box.net where you get 5GB storage for free but on these platforms you don’t get option for desktop sync and mobile sync. SkyDrive is coming up with better integration with Windows 8 and Windows Phone 7 and will keep you posted on same. Earlier we also shared an article providing information about 16 cheap cloud storage options available on web.