The SkyDrive app from Microsoft is a step towards meeting on-the-go file access demands of people. For those who have not heard of SkyDrive, it’s a cloud service similar to Google Docs that lets you store files in the cloud and you can access them from anywhere, even from your mobile device.
Microsoft has also introduced the SkyDrive app version in 32 languages for Apple with a few stylistic changes. So, if you are using a Windows Phone, this application could be one of the quickest ways to get files to your iPhone.
What Can You Do With SkyDrive?
- The online file hosting service enables you to share links to folders or file, create folders, or delete files with ease.
- Users can also create Microsoft documents because SkyDrive has support for web app versions of Word, Excel, and Powerpoint.
- Uploading a file onto SkyDrive is no hassle. Since the app is developed using HTML5, you just have to drag and drop files to the place where you want to get them stored.
- If you want to share photos stored in your phone or PC, all you have to do is select the photos, tap mail and put email id of the person to whom the photos are to be sent. Rather than sending as attachment, these photos are directly uploaded to SkyDrive, so you don’t need to worry about attaching heavy files.
How is SkyDrive Different from Other Cloud Services?
What gives SkyDrive an edge over other cloud services like Dropbox and Amazon Cloud Drive is the 25GB free storage capacity it offers, while the later two offer 2GB and 5GB free storage, respectively. In addition to this, users get the option to keep their files private, public, and shared.
Unlike iCloud, the cloud service developed by Apple, SkyDrive gives much flexibility when it comes to content synchronization. When content stored in iCloud is accessible only through Apple devices, content stored in SkyDrive is accessible though any Apple device with iOS4 or advanced platforms and phones with Windows Mobile OS. All you need to do to enjoy seamless storage service is install this app in these devices.
What is Missing in SkyDrive?
What is lacking in SkyDrive is the inability to transfer entire folder directly to the storage place. Be it documents, images, or music files, you will have to drag these files onto the folder where you want to get them stored. Moreover, there’s no option to select a bunch of files and move them to a specific folder. For this, you will have to move the individual file that makes the whole process frustrating & time consuming.
SkyDrive is great if you want to store your files or share them with everyone. But, when it comes to doing minor editing or tweaks in the images or documents saved, you are left with no option. You cannot open these files in a different application. For example – You can store, view or even share an image on SkyDrive but you cannot open the image in Photoshop installed in your mobile or PC for a little editing.
There’s one more limitation - You cannot create a file in an application installed in the device and then upload it to SkyDrive.
Though SkyDrive gives you a maximum storage space of 25GB, it has limited the maximum file size which can be uploaded to 50MB. So for files larger than 50MB, this creates an issue.
There is no SkyDrive app created for Android platform, which is restricting its usage to a very small community of users of devices on Windows Phone and iOS platforms.
Hopefully, these limitations will be addressed by Microsoft in future versions.
How to Register for the Application?
You must have a Windows Live id to login to SkyDrive. In case, you already have a Windows Live, Hotmail, or Xbox LIVE account, you will automatically have a SkyDrive account. The login process is quick and once you have entered the username & password, you will be directed to the SkyDrive page.
You can download and install the SkyDrive app on your Windows mobile from Windows Marketplace and Apple App Store. This will enable you to access all the files stored in SkyDrive and even the files that other users have shared with your over SkyDrive.
Conclusion
What makes SkyDrive a useful application is the ease of creating, deleting, and managing the content online. If you have more than a dozen of folders lurking around and you want to put them at a single yet always accessible place or feel the need of sharing them with others, SkyDrive is the app for you.
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