Today, Google launched Google Drive, a cloudstorage service to rival Dropbox and Microsoft’s SkyDrive. Apart from thestandard Dropbox-like synching, sharing and snapshot rollback features, it will launchwith nice integration options for Gmail and Google Docs users. If you’re one of theseven people actively using their Google+account, Drive can also store images that can be shared with your other Google+ friend.The Web-based search and file viewer look good, and it’s clear that Google isleveraging its impressive tech to compete with Dropbox, which is being skewered left andright by companies looking to eat its cloudy pie.
The Google Drive storage prices are really tempting. You get 5GB free, 25GB for$2.49/month, 100GB for $4.99/month or 1TB for $49.99/month. When you upgrade to a paidaccount, your Gmail account also gets upgraded to 25GB. Considering that I just spent $10on a 50GB Dropbox account upgrade for a month, since I have a large animation to sharewith a client, a dirt-cheap 25GB Google Drive would have been a better option.
But “better” is a relative term. It’s no secret how Google makes itsmoney, and when I first read about Google Drive, the first thing that came to mind wasthis campaign idea: “Google Drive: Like Dropbox, but we read all your sh*t.”Google Drive costs less because Google needs to know more about you for itstargeted advertising, and I personally don’t want them data mining my personaldocuments, however boring.
Another terrifying bit of information about Drive is that it “is also an openplatform,” which means that developers will be able to leverage Drive for use incloud syncing. Normally that would also be a good thing, but Google’s laissez-faireattitude toward malware is going to make this a potential nightmare for Android users. Onebad app download and suddenly some pasty dude in Siberia is publishing your novel. So,Google Drive looks promising, but users should be careful when jumping in with bothfeet.
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