Archive for October, 2011


Jungle Disk

Cost / Month: $2
Storage: Unlimited
Free Trial: No
Review: Securely store, sync, back up, and share online

Ratings
Overall

Your computer files could be corrupted and lost in just a matter of seconds. A sudden power surge, fire or theft can result in the loss of your very valuable files. If you don’t have your files backed up with an online backup service like Jungle Disk, then you risk losing everything on your computer. Jungle Disk is an online backup service that is very affordable for backing up your computer. They were founded in 1998 and were acquired by Rackspace US, Inc. in 2008 and are quickly becoming a reputable online backup service.

Jungle Disk is different in that they don’t provide the storage. The storage space is provided through Rackspace Cloud Files and Amazon S3. You are given the option to choose where you would like to store your data, either with Rackspace Cloud Files or Amazon S3.

Jungle Disk pricing begins at $2.00 a month for the Simply Backup package, which doesn’t include storage. Storage is purchased separately beginning at .15 per GB. You only have to pay for what you use. Because you pay for what you store, there are no limits on the amount of storage. Jungle Disk does allow you to backup external drives, NAS devices as well as network drives. The price includes storage on multiple computers.

Jungle Disk pricing for business begins at $4.00 a month for the Workgroup Edition, which does not include storage. The Workgroup Edition allows you to backup, sync and access data between 2-100 users. The Jungle Disk Server Edition begins at $5.00 a month which does not include storage. Storage begins at .15 per GB and like the other packages you pay for the storage you use. There are no limits on the file size or the amount of storage you use.

All of your data is encrypted before it leaves your computer and stays that way while it is being stored. You have the ability to restore and view backed up files for the life of your service with Jungle Disk. You also have the ability to remove backed up files at any time so you are not paying for storage of unneeded files. You set up the password and only you will have access to your stored files.
Jungle Disk offers email and telephone customer support, but there is no live chat available. However, the storage companies that are affiliated with Jungle Disk do offer live chat. Jungle Disk also offers an FAQ page that is helpful. Customer support isn’t as good as other companies, but seems sufficient enough.

Whether you are looking for personal online backup or business online backup, Jungle Disk can certainly be a very cost effective and secure online backup system for you. Your files are important to you, whether it is emails, family photos, recipes, or your very important business files you need to be assured that your files are safe in the event of an unforeseen mishap. I highly recommend adding Jungle Disk as an online backup source.

More Info  

KineticD Online Backup

Free Trial: 30 days
Storage: Unlimited
Cost / Month: $0.5/GB
Review: 100% data recovery track record since its inception in 2002

Ratings
Overall

With so much of your important business records stored on your computer, it is imperative for every business to be sure to back up all of your computer files with an online backup service such as KineticD Online Backup Service (formerly known as Data Deposit Box). A natural disaster or sudden power loss can cause great damage to your business, some business are forced to close after computer file losses.

KineticD Online Backup Service offers online backup to small and medium sized business. Founded in 2002, they have a record of 100% data recovery.

KineticD charges a simple rate of .50 per GB of storage space per month. In addition to the storage fees, there is a license fee which varies. There are some options for you to look at depending on what your business needs are. With KineticD you can have as many computers on one account being backed up. Since you are paying for the amount of GB you are using per month, you are not paying for space not being used and will be saving money. There are no set-up fees, and no equipment to purchase.

KineticD Online Backup Service is simple to sign up for. Once you sign up for service you are given a link to download the software which is easy enough. A user login is required frequently for added security. Any changes made or requests made are followed up with a system generated email to confirm the changes. You do have the option to stop these emails. Files are protected with the strongest encryption before they leave your computer and stored with the same security that financial institutes use.

At any time during your subscription, you can add files or drives you want to back up. You have the option to specify file types that you don’t want to back up. KineticD allows you to add USB drives to back up as well. KineticD monitors your computer and backups files continuously. KineticD Online Backup Service allows you to delete files from storage that you no longer need to store.
In the event of unforeseen circumstances and you experience a file loss, or if you are out of town and need to get a file from your work computer, you can access the business files through the web. In addition to accessing through a computer, you can also gain access through your iPhone/iPad app.

KineticD online backup only offers email customer support or live phone support on Mondays through Friday. KineticD online backup offers a free trial, so you can give it a try before you commit to buying. If your business is not currently backing up your computer files, KineticD is a great online backup service you should consider using. Their website is very informative offering plenty of information to get you started. You can request a demonstration, as well as a quote. Don’t wait until it is too late to protect your very important business files and drives.

More Info  

Norton Online Backup

Free Trial: 30 days
Cost / Month: $4.16
Storage: unlimited
Review: Back up files from up to five computers, even if they run different platforms

Ratings
Overall

Your computer files are very important – and possibly in danger. A sudden storm, fire, theft or other unforeseen circumstance can wipe out your computer’s hard drive in a split second. If you do not have an online backup for your computer, you could loose everything that is important to you. Norton Online Backup system backs up those important files, so you are guaranteed they will be safe and accessible to you when you need them.

Norton Online Backup does not give you any options as far as plan packages. Norton Online Backup is currently offering a one year subscription for $24.99, which is a 50% discount, which gives you online backup of up to 5 computers. This plan is usually $49.99 for the year and gives you 25GB of storage space for up to 5 computers. This is certainly a large amount of storage space, however if you need additional storage, you can purchase it if you need it at any time during your subscription. There are no limits for uploading. The subscription is a yearly subscription; there are no month to month plans.

Norton Online Backup is compatible with both Mac OS X and Windows. There is software to install, which is easy enough to do. Once you are set up with Norton Online Backup, set your scheduled backups and it will automatically back up your files. You can simply set it and forget it. Norton Online Backup Service has an extremely user friendly interface. There isn’t a big learning curve to worry about. Your files are encrypted and stored with government grade encryption. If you should suffer any data loss, or the loss of your entire hard drive, you can access your files anywhere that you have access to the web. You can also access your files with your iPhone, which is a very important feature since we have become so mobile.

One important feature that Norton lacks is file syncing. Norton waits until the next scheduled backup before backing up the files. Norton Online Backup is a stable online backup service. There are not too many frills to it, but it does the job it is meant to do and that is back up your computer files, and stores them. If you are looking for the simplicity and a straight forward online backup service, Norton Backup is a service you should look at.

There is a free trial, so you are able to try it before you buy it. Customer support is offered via online chat, email or phone support so you should have adequate customer support with your subscription.

Don’t make a mistake and wait too long to protect your computer files. Protect your valuable computer files now before any unforeseen accident occurs causing you to lose you pictures, email and financial documents. With so much of our lives stored on our computers, everyone should have their files backed up with an online backup service. Norton Online Backup is an acceptable option to consider when looking into online backup services.

More Info  

CrashPlan Pro

Cost / Month: $4.71
Storage: 50 GB
Free Trial: 30 Days
Review: Serious backup designed for laptops

Ratings
Overall

CrashPlan Pro is the latest offering from the world of back up data. It should not be confused with its predecessor, CrashPlan, which was aimed solely at consumers at home. CrashPlan Pro is designed specifically for small and medium-sized businesses who are desperate to keep their data safe in the event of an accident. CrashPlan Pro’s creators claim that you can start backing up your important data in under 3 minutes. This is certainly appealing for businesses that live in constant fear of losing their precious data.

What Is CrashPlan Pro All About?
Bringing CrashPlan Pro into your life is certainly very easy. All you need to do is sign up to one of their packages, download the program and start backing up your data. Those who are less than advanced when it comes to computers will be delighted with the ease of use.

CrashPlan Pro has a number of changes from the regular CrashPlan+ package. As already mentioned, it is set up for business with the number of computers you’re allowed use increased to 200 from 10. Other additional features include individual login accounts, online management (administrator) and the ability to manage other users. There is actually a CrashPlan Pro e version designed for enterprise that allows up to 10,000 computers to access at once.

CrashPlan Pro is not exactly cheap. It costs $7.49 per month per computer though this offers unlimited storage space. This corresponds to $1,498 a month for a business with 200 computers. Alternatively, you could buy storage space in blocks from a minimum of 50GB to a maximum of 4TB.

Pros
Certainly, having the unlimited space option offers total peace of mind for business owners. Other great features include the product’s ability to back up information as it changes for the most up to date service imaginable. Even better is the speed at which you can restore your data should an accident ever occur. If you lose a file, all you need to do is open CrashPlan Pro and you should be able to restore it immediately. Also, you can log in via your online account and access files even when you’re out of the office. This is in marked contrast to other companies that may take days to recover your files.

The dashboard is also a joy to behold. It is extremely neat and enables you to see how many computers are online. Other data that is instantly visible includes knowledge of how much data has been backed up, number of users in the account and information relating to the number of computers backing up at the time you’re viewing the screen.

Cons
The original CrashPlan allowed you to save files in a friend’s computer. This is no longer the case with CrashPlan Pro. Unfortunately, there is no mobile app at present and there is no server support either. These are all problems that could affect a business though the absence of a mobile app is only an issue in terms of convenience.

Verdict
Of all the online back up services available to small and medium-sized businesses, CrashPlan Pro has to rate as one of the best. It is not perfect but it does have an array of features, is easy to use and above all, it keeps your data safe and that could be the difference between a company’s success and failure.

More Info   Visit Site

IDrive

Cost / Month: Free
Free Trial: Unlimited
Storage: 5 GB
Review: 150 GB available for $4.95/month

Ratings
Overall

iDrive may be one of the most improved backup services over the past several years. The for these improvements, some people thought that while it still offered a solid value, the features were not quite as solid as the competitions. This was especially true for their mobile integration and overall portability. With so many changes taking place on the online backup service landscape staying up-to-date with what each service has to offer is essential. Here is a closer review of the iDrive backup service and what it has to offer.

Overview of iDrive Backup Service

iDrive offers a variety of different products and is compatible with both Windows and Mac. All of their products are based around the same fundamental packages. The first is iDrive Basic which is their free online storage service. It offers 5 GB of storage space and the same features as the paid version. It is a solid option for you to either test out their service or to store small important files such as photos, media, and documents.

iDrive Pro is the paid service and offers several different packages – personal use, family pack, and business. The personal use package is $4.95 per month and allows you to store up 250 GB worth of data. Is important to note that the personal use license only allows you to backup a single computer. The Family Pack is $14.95 per month and offers 500 GB of storage which can be spread across five computers. The Business option ranges from $9.95 per month to $79.95 per month. It offers between 50 GB and 1000 GB of space which can be spread across an unlimited number of computers.

iDrive Features

Data Management
When it comes to data management the iDrive backup service offers several important features. The first is CDP or Continuous Data Protection. With this, the service will automatically recognize any files that are modified and will back them up in real time. Additionally, no data will ever be deleted from your online account until you manually delete it or use the cleanup tool which will match your desktop data to your online account. Finally, iDrive will allow you to restore the last 30 versions of any files backed up to your account.

Friendly User Interface
One of the biggest changes to iDrive over the past several years is a much improved user interface. You now get a mapped drive backup as well as use of the iDrive Explorer which provides you with the ability to drag-and-drop files from your online drive to your local computer. You can even share your files and folders through their web interface.

Additional Tools

Portable USB Drive
For $69.95 you can purchase a portable USB drive which you can use to back up 350 GB worth of data. Plus, it can be automatically integrated with your online backup service which gives you an extra layer of protection for your data.

iDrive WordPress Plugin
iDrive backup service has also created a plug-in for WordPress which will automatically backup all of your WordPress blog data and MySQL data. It will then automatically backup your website every day. It also offers a restore application which will allow you to restore data from your WordPress account to your Windows machine.

Review of IDrive Backup Service

Over the past several years, IDrive has made number of enhancements to their service and their tools while still offering a free service and competitively priced premium services. When you factor in the additional tools that they have released recently, there is no reason not to think that they will continue to dramatically improve their services. If this is the case, then they will likely be a top competitor for some time.

More Info   Visit Site

What is Online Backup?

With today’s modern technology, many things are moving to the online world.  With valuable information stored on computers and handheld devices, it has become more important than ever to back it up to prevent loss in the event of a power outage or computer shutdown. When it comes to backing up data stored on computers, [...]

Best Discounts for Online Backup Services

When looking for the best discounts for online backup services, it’s important to choose not just by price, but to look for what is offered for such a discount. Certainly, it is convenient to get a 50% discount on a product, but if it doesn’t do what other comparable products on the market do, then [...]