Drop the Box: SpiderOak's Sync/Backup Service Does More, Costs Less

Half the Price of Dropbox, Requires No Data Reorganization, Backs Up And/Or Syncs

CHICAGO, June 18 -- SpiderOak's recent addition of synchronization to its suite of online data backup/sharing/access/storage services gives computer owners a more comprehensive, flexible, secure and affordable alternative to Dropbox - a sync service that costs twice as much and requires extra steps for far fewer benefits.

  Compared to Dropbox, SpiderOak offers:

  --  Sync'ing without reorganizing. Dropbox requires users to place items
      into a specific folder that is then replicated on other devices where
      the software is installed.  SpiderOak Sync allows users to select
      groups of folders from all computers and external drives with no
      modification to the folder structure.
  --  Complete backup protection, not just of sync'd files. Dropbox backs up
      only the files contained in the dedicated Dropbox sync folder. With
      SpiderOak, a user can choose to backup any file including those that
      are not sync'd. SpiderOak further retains all previous versions of
      files as well as files that have been deleted, eliminating holes in
      the storage safety net.
  --  A backup-without-sync option that saves disk space as well as
      eliminating extraneous data movement. Since Dropbox can only backup
      files by sync'ing them, files that only need to be backed up and not
      sync'd must still be replicated on every machine, consuming
      considerable amounts of additional storage. SpiderOak backup and sync
      functions are separate, eliminating extra overhead.
  --  No limit on file sizes. Dropbox limits files uploaded through its Web
      interface to 350MB - not large enough to accommodate many photo albums
      or graphic presentations. SpiderOak can sync, backup and share files
      of all sizes.
  --  Greater security in a 'zero-knowledge' environment. In addition to
      automatically encrypting all data during both transfer and storage,
      SpiderOak has a no-password-storage policy that makes user data and
      even filenames inaccessible to employees. The user's password is used
      to generate an encryption key that is also inaccessible to the
      company. Dropbox lacks these important privacy measures.

  --  More features for half the price. SpiderOak charges $100/year per
      100GB for a complete package of services, including backup, file
      sharing, remote access and storage of any files designated by the user
      PLUS sync'ing of selected folders. In contrast, Dropbox costs $99/year
      for 50GB of data that includes storage, backup, remote access and file
      sharing ONLY for sync'd files.

Other SpiderOak benefits include the ability to backup and sync data located on network volumes and/or external drives. Dropbox can only sync data located on the local machine.

"Comparing online storage/sync services is difficult. You have to drill down to the details to see the differences and determine what's best for you," said SpiderOak CEO Ethan R. Oberman. "If you need true data backup as well as sync, don't want to rearrange your folder structure, care about data security, want to keep costs low and/or need to manage external drives as well as computers, SpiderOak is the clear choice."

SpiderOak enables users to backup, sync, share, access, and store files from any combination of Windows, Mac and Linux computers as well as external storage media in a single account. All data is housed in a central storage repository and accessible from any Internet-enabled device.

The service's sync feature enables users to set up an unlimited number of sync routines between two or more locations and/or devices, ensuring that the same content is available on home and work machines, desktops and laptops, or any other combination of computers, external hard drives, network drives, removable media and/or peripherals.

About SpiderOak

SpiderOak provides innovative cloud-based personal data management services that simplify the process of backing up, accessing, organizing, sharing and synchronizing data from any number of computers or external storage media. The company's solution suite protects users against data loss, permits browser-based access to information from the user's personal computing devices from any Internet-enabled computer, ensures common file availability across multiple user machines without manual sync'ing, offers password-protected 'ShareRooms' for easy family/friend/colleague access, and provides a variety of technical advantages for efficient and cost-effective data management. For more information, visit https://spideroak.com/.