You don’t need to speed a lot of budgets to make dedicated storage to keep your data in a central place. Cloud computing makes it possible to store data remotely, and you can access it from anywhere. And there are many companies that are offering cloud storage services. Many businesses are using cloud storage service because it provides more scalable resources than local storage. Handling data locally involves too many difficulties, headaches and costs. At the same time, remote service is a better choice.
But when there are multiple famous cloud storage players out there, finding a suitable service is challenging. So in this guide, we will discuss the most popular cloud storage services you should use for personal use or store business backups that are Google cloud vs Dropbox. And I will mention both crucial features to find which is perfect.
Cloud computing technology offers several excellent features: zero-knowledge end-to-end encryption, sharing, user-friendly interface, document editing, collaboration and many more. Dropbox was the first cloud storage service that brought the concept of cloud computing, while Google Drive came after a few years. But GD is ahead in popularity. Let’s understand what cloud storage is, how it works and what different types of storage are.
What is Cloud Storage?
Some people are still confused about cloud storage terms. Well, it is not a new term, as an internet user, you are already using it like YouTube for video browsing, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter for social sharing, Hotmail and Gmail for email communication, Google docs to share, upload and edit document files, Dropbox for files hosting; these are a real example of cloud service. But we can also see it in different perspectives like storing backup, saving business data, and sharing computer resources via the Internet.
So, we can say cloud storage is a service that stores files, pictures, videos, and document files on online storage and allows access using the Internet. And also, they offer scalability to extend and decrease resources according to requirements and needs quickly. Many companies like Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Pcloud, Mega, and others provide cloud storage services on a subscription base with different pricing plans. And they are also best free cloud storage that gives 2GB to 15GB free online storage, even Degoo and Blimp gives 100GB to 200GB.
How does cloud storage work?
CS works differently, unlike storing data on external devices, including USB, hard disk, flash drives, DVD etc. You upload files using the Internet on the service provider’s virtual server, and finally, your uploaded files are stored on multiple servers to ensure more availability and less data loss. And then, you can access your hosted files using the web, desktop and mobile apps.
Types of Cloud Storage
There are different types of CS services, including private, public and hybrid. But we only discuss two major types.
- Private Cloud Storage
The private term makes sense of what it means and uses. Some companies like to set up cloud storage privately, so only company employees and authorized users can access data. And there are many vendors allow you to set up your own private Cloud like Amazon web services and Microsoft Azure. That offers a dedicated server and resources to set up your own private data center.
- Public Cloud Storage
Public storage is like we use daily, for example, Dropbox, MediaFire, Mega, Degoo, Backblaze, CrashPlan, and many others that allow us to store, edit, and share files on a remote server. But it does not mean your hosted data is insecure, and everyone can access it on the public cloud. Generally, the public storage term is used from a different perspective; for example, users can publicly share data with other users.
Also, Read: Server Management: A Guide to the Undiscovered World
Google Drive vs Dropbox
- Collaboration
Both offer excellent collaboration features. The drive is a perfect choice to collaborate with Google’s ecosystems like Google docs, sheets, presentations, Gmail and workplace. And also, you can integrate with other services like the Microsoft Office app. Likewise, Dropbox also allows integration with Microsoft OneDrive and other cloud services. And don’t worry about syncing; Dropbox saves all changes in the DB server in original format.
- Sharing
Both are famous due to their excellent sharing features. Dropbox provides some advanced sharing features like putting restrictions on shared files; for example, a receiver can edit or view the file or note. Furthermore, you can protect files by setting passwords on shared files. However, Google does not offer this feature. There are some limits to upload a complete file, like Google allows you to share a 5TB size file, while Dropbox only allows sharing 250GB files.
- Pricing
If you need free online storage, then both give limited storage. But in free space, Google Drive is ahead and offers more free storage (15GB) than Dropbox, which only gives 2GB of free space.
DB’s paid plans are a little expensive compared to GD. It offers 3 paid plans, including plus, family and professional. You can get 2TB cloud storage for 12$/monthly and a professional plan of 3TB storage for 20$ per month. While in comparison, Google offers more affordable premium plans with a storage capacity from 100 GB to 30TB.
- Security and Privacy Policy
Both offer good security that keeps your uploaded data secure on the cloud. While if we talk about Privacy Policy, then both are shit in privacy. And they mentioned they scan, read and analyze your uploaded data to improve their service. But their security is solid; your data transfer securely with end to end encryption. But they don’t provide zero-knowledge encryption.
