Firstly, let’s clarify what we mean by ‘cloud consumer services’. What we are talking about here are widely available file sharing, syncing and backup services. They use a client program on the computer or mobile device; when a change is made (such as a new document being created) it is ‘synced’ to a secure area on the cloud, from where it can then be accessed by any other device the user may have. Alternatively, it can be considered as a (hopefully) safe backup location, from where the data can be recovered in the event of problems. For inclusion here, the service should have a basic free offering, along with a low-cost option for additional storage.
There are literally dozens if not hundreds of such services. As the market continues to mature, there will be a shakeout and many of these services will vanish. Some will simply go to the wall, whilst others will be taken over and absorbed by competitors. Many PC vendors currently offer proprietary cloud services to their customers – these too can be anticipated to go. For this reason, we suggest sticking to the big names who are committed to this game and who are likely to be around in years to come. The candidates here (in no particular order) are Microsoft OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox, Apple iCloud, Box and hubiC.
Formerly known as SkyDrive, Microsoft’s offering has been through several iterations over the years. It is an extremely comprehensive offering; aside from the usual file sync and sharing, it is integrated with the web versions of Word, Powerpoint and Excel, enabling documents to be viewed and edited with a high degree of fidelity with their desktop equivalents. Available as a download for Windows 7 and Mac, OneDrive is built-in to Windows 8 and fully integrated both with it and Office 365/Office 2013. Storing all your documents in OneDrive brings some other benefits; suppose you acquire a new Windows 8 computer – set it up using your Microsoft ID and it will automatically restore all your documents to it.
OneDrive offers a generous 15GB of free space. By referring friends plus using OneDrive for backing up your photos you can gain another 8GB of space. Beyond this, 100GB space costs £1.99 a month. However, subscribers to Office 365 receive a massive 1TB storage. As OneDrive allows individual file uploads of 10GB, this potentially makes it a good place for storing videos. Besides Windows 7, 8 and Mac OS X 10.7 onwards, the OneDrive client is available for iOS, Android and Windows Phone.
Downsides? Microsoft have a reputation for ‘changing the rules’ with their products, sometimes removing features that people have come to rely upon, although in fairness this charge could be levied at many vendors. OneDrive does not support as many devices and environments as some of its competitors; the tight links with Windows 8 represent a double-edged sword as it can be difficult to diagnose and resolve problems (for instance, there is no separate client program that can be re-installed). It is also worth knowing that OneDrive - not unreasonably perhaps but in contrast to some of its competitors - has a retention period of 270 days. That is, if a file is not accessed for that period it will be deleted, which may be a consideration if you are using it for long term archive storage. But for many people, OneDrive is a great solution.
Google Drive
Google have done much to popularise the concept of cloud computing, even going so far as to introduce a complete computing environment (the Chromebook/Chromebox) that relies upon the cloud for storage. Initially everything was done via a relatively clunky web interface, but in 2012 Google introduced a client program that makes the space appear as a conventional folder on a computer.
Google Drive offers 15GB free space, the same as OneDrive. For US $1.99 month or equivalent you get 100GB - plans for larger amount of data are available. The client software is available for a wide range of operating systems, including older versions of Windows such as XP and Vista. However, note that there may be some restrictions; for instance, iPhones and iPads running iOS 6 can view Google documents but not edit them as that requires iOS 7 or better.
Individual files of up to 5TB (!) can be used with Google Drive. However, documents that are converted to Google document formats (word, spreadsheet, presentations) are restricted to 50MB.
If you use Gmail, Google Drive is an obvious choice.
Dropbox
Dropbox started in 2007 and is commonly regarded as 'the' file sync company. Unlike Microsoft, Apple and Google, it has no other significant business and is dedicated to cloud storage. Dropbox operates on a freemium model; users receive 2GB free storage and can then pay for additional storage and facilities - a business model that many others have copied. Existing users can also refer new users and receive an additional 500MB storage for each one that subsequently signs up, up to a maximum of 18GB free storage. Paid accounts start at £7.99 a month for 1TB storage (Dropbox recently increased by a factor of ten to this amount to remain competitive with Microsoft and Google).
Whilst Dropbox only gives a paltry amount of free storage, it is a hugely popular service. Mainly this is because it is straightforward, simply works and is very reliable. Another consideration is that it isn't Microsoft, Apple or Google - companies that some people are suspicious of. On a more positive note, the Dropbox client is available for a wide variety of machines and operating systems, even including some very old releases of Windows and Mac OS X.
Verdict? Provided the amount of free space is sufficient for your needs or you are happy to subscribe, Dropbox is the cloud of choice for many people.
Apple iCloud
Apple's iCloud is more of a mechanism for backing up iPhones and iPads plus a synchronisation service for calendar and contacts on those devices. It does allow document storage for Mac OS X users, but with limitations. However, it is shortly to relaunch as Apple iCloud Drive and will operate in the same way as OneDrive and Dropbox etc for general file storage, on Windows PCs as well as Macs and iOS.
In line with their competitors, Apple have been busy adjusting their prices. All users get 5GB free space. Upgrades start at 79p month for 20GB, with 200GB costing £2.99.
Apple have a very loyal customer base and iCloud is the natural choice for such people. Whether it will appeal to the wider Windows market remains to be seen.
Box
Like Dropbox, Box is a dedicated cloud storage/file sync company, with personal, business and enterprise options. For personal users it offers 10GB free storage and a maximum file size of 250MB. For £7.00 a month this increases to 100GB storage with a maximum file size of 5GB. This makes Box a bit more expensive than its competitors, but it is a highly regarded service and with features of specific interest to business users.
hubiC
HubiC is not as well known as the other cloud services, but has received a boost in usage this year. It's main claim to fame is that whereas most cloud services are US-based and/or US-owned, it is French. Many people are suspicious that the American security services regularly 'snoop' on services such as OneDrive and Google, but believe that the location and ownership of hubiC means it will be exempt from that. For the record, hubiC is part of OVH, the largest web hosting service in Europe and the 3rd largest worldwide. Such things aside, hubiC offers a very generous 25GB of free storage, whereas 100GB is just one euro a month and a massive 10TB storage is just ten euros a month. hubiC does much the same as the other services, although the client end is perhaps not so polished. However, given the tremendous value it offers people are inclined to overlook this aspect.
For maximum free space and ultra-affordable high capacity, this might be worth looking at.
In Conclusion
Consumer cloud services have improved significantly this year. The amount of free space that can be claimed has increased, whilst some of the paid accounts now offer significant amounts of storage for very little money. However, for many personal users the free accounts are more than adequate.
It is not necessary to stick with just one provider and by signing up with 2 or 3 all sorts of options become available. For instance, free accounts with OneDrive, Google and hubiC would give you 55GB storage! Alternatively, use one for everyday use and one for archiving, or use one as a backup for the other, or one for business and one for pleasure. Also keep in mind that some NAS units (for instance Synology and QNAP) can connect to the most popular services to provide free or low cost offsite backup.