We put five free online storage services, which let you upload your files to a 'virtual hard drive' and access them from your other devices, to the test to find out just which is the best one for you.
OpenDrive
OpenDrive gives you twice as much online storage as Dropbox. Its desktop software is only for Windows, but it includes a feature that enables you to sell your downloads.
How it works
OpenDrive Desktop places a virtual hard drive within your computer's 'y Computer/Computer' menu, the icon for which is located on your desktop by default. Like Dropbox, you drag and drop your files and folders into it, and they are immediately uploaded to your account's storage space on the OpenDrive server. Dragging files and folders out from it will download copies of them to your local computer's hard drive. Basically, it works like an external hard drive connected to your computer, except that it exists online.
Syncing a file or folder is done by right-clicking on any file or folder in your local hard drive and choosing 'Synchronise with OpenDrive'. A copy of the file or folder will be placed in your OpenDrive virtual drive and uploaded to your OpenDrive account online space.
An intriguing feature of OpenDrive, setting it apart from the other services reviewed here, is that it lets you sell downloads of your files to the public. To do this, you right-click on a file stored in your OpenDrive virtual drive and, in the menu prompt, enter a selling price (in US dollars). OpenDrive will create a link that you can post. The person who clicks the link will be required to pay via PayPal to download your file, and the money will be credited to your OpenDrive account.
What's good
OpenDrive gives you a generous 5GB of online storage with a free account.
What needs to be fixed
OpenDrive Desktop requires that you have Java on your computer, and that could be a deal-breaker if you prefer to avoid having this runtime platform installed on your system.
Moreover, there isn't a direct way to exit from the OpenDrive Desktop program. The software has to be fully uninstalled; otherwise, the OpenDrive virtual drive resides as a device permanently connected to your computer.
Also, the program froze up a few times when I tried to drag and drop files that were a couple of megabytes in size from my laptop's hard drive to my account's OpenDrive virtual drive.
Bottom line
You get lots of online storage for free -- but the desktop program in its present form appears to have some stability issues.
Product Specs
OS: Windows XP/Vista/7
Mobile apps: None
Storage size: 5GB
Maximum file size: 250MB
Daily data-transfer limit: 1GB
Paid plans: $4.99 (£3.19) per month or $49.99 (£31.90) per year for 100GB, 1GB maximum file size, 5GB per day limit; $14.99 (£9.58) per month or $149.99 (£95.80) per year for 500GB, 1GB maximum file size, 25GB per day limit; $24.99 (£15.97) per month or $249.99 (£159.70) per year for 1TB, 1GB maximum file size, 50GB per day limit.
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Comments
Pete Vicentini Jr. said: This is my top ten http1sttechguidesblogspotHowever all of them have free basic service but the magic is in the paid service
James said: Please re-read or read for the first time the article Each service reviewed offers free basic storage in addition to paid greater capacity services No scam here
Loadof said: The very first line of this article The 5 best free online storage servicesYet these are not free The writer of this is clearly an incompetent idiot or is a scammer simply schilling product
Scottgauld73 said: Drop box is horrible I loaded up videos to share with my photos and they sit there and buffer constantly when trying to watch from a mobile device I dont mind paying for but want a service that doesnt slow down the speed or transfer rate for video making it unwatchable
Monica said: Then theres CloudMe 3GB free and up to 19GB with referralsGreat Swedish based European storage alternative
Jon Snow said: Online data storage are much more reliable and long lasting when compared to local solutions provided you find a good host heres a list of some of the better ones Some of them were mentioned in this article toohttpwwwetechmagcom20121
Matt Egan said: Me neither An odd one To be investigated
Simon said: Not sure how this ended up in my inbox as one of todays top stories However it does highlight just how much has changed over the last two years and a revised review might be warrantedFor my own purposes I am usingSkydrive which floats my boat at least
adrive said: Been using Adrive 50Gb free storage for over 5 years to back up my other backups of photos And never lost any files with them Other services dont offer enough free storage Interface may be antiquated but works and is free Company also been around a long time and seem to be going strong 5 stars from me coz its a true free service
Bullitbiter said: Ive been told there is a possible new player coming onto the market that gives you the option to pay for what you use between 1GB to 1TBIm not 100 sure but i think its due to launch this year 2012 and i think the domain name is wwwEpicCloudingcomAnyone else heard of them or have any more info on themPS by the looks of it there facebook shows they have just set up a new accounthttpswwwfacebookcompagesCraig
Fooman said: hold on a minute maybe Im missing something Isnt this supposed to be a list of the best 5 FREE storage services Whats all this subscription stuff then Bit misleading or maybe we get paid
Jay Olson said: DropBox
ochionnaith said: Lost all my dataI signed up last year very happy with the marketing pricing and the way the service operated However in December all my data was lost and opendrive have been unable to restore provide access to a backup etc I was devastated as a lot of the items I had stored were single copy and are now apparently lost forever If a provider fails in the single most important and basic premise of its service in not being able to guarantee the safe storage and easy return of data how can they be trusted I am surprised that I have not read more about this on the web as a co-worker has had the same experience The response from their customer service team has been very poor I received a response to my query as to where my files were blandly informing me that the files were lost and no further efforts would be made to restore them there was no follow up offer of refund or it appears any determination on behalf of opendrive to find a successful solution Trust Not so sure
Vaultscape said: Thanks for the detailed research and testing Howard In my opinion Dropbox is the best free online storage service Its user interface is extremely easy to understand and its uploading speed is fast too
free online storage said: A file transfer service providesa number of packages to opt as per ones requirementTo know perfectly howto send a file you should go through the plans and packages carefully asdescribed on the service providers website free online storage
angelo dane said: I think he means that you need a review update
Social Media Marketing Blog said: All Cloud services are great in services these services are veryhelpfulforweb mastersand business organizations tostore data on internet
Starscream said: I use Iozetacom and Ive never had any problems with my backed up files
JoeGP said: Your various links on the bottom to Dropbox opendrive dont work at least not anymore they just send you back to the first pageOh and 1GB thats not storage thats pocket change i know its free but so is a rusty bicycle with flat tires
Miketwrs said: DropBox and SugarSync are the bestcloud storage companiesTheir systems are reliable but easy to useUse this link to open a DropBoxaccount amp you will get an additional 250Mb of free spacehttpdbttrzorpr6Use this link to open a SugarSyncaccount amp you will get an additional 500Mb of free spacehttpswwwsugarsynccomrefeTo receive the bonus you have todownload and install the Dropbox or SugarSync software