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Pogoplug Mobile: Create Your Own Home-Based Cloud Storage System

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Pogoplug announced a new device, the Pogoplug Mobile, which streams media from a connected external USB hard drive or an SD card to any Android or iOS device or to your computer through the Internet. The updated mobile apps will also help you automatically backup your videos and photos taken on the go to the new Pogoplug Mobile. The combination gives you quick and easy unlimited access to your videos, pictures, music and other documents without having to pay a monthly fee to cloud service, like iCloud, SugarSync or DropBox.

The Pogoplug Mobile stores content like videos, photos, music and streams them without any of the limits that many other services like DropBox, SugarSync or the forthcoming iCloud have, except for those your wireless carrier or Internet provider might place on your data usage. If you have a huge video file that is many gigabytes in size, this device will be able to handle it.

Price Compared to Cloud Solutions

Other streaming services might have total storage limits before they ask you to pay a monthly service fee for as long as you use the service. DropBox provides 2GB for free and SugarSync gives the user 5GB. To get more you will pay extra. For example, if you want 50GB of storage on DropBox you pay $10/month. SugarSync charges $5/month for 30GB. By comparison, you can get the new Pogoplug Mobile, which gives you as much storage as you have hard drive space, plus the amount of space you have on largest SD card you own, and it won’t cost you a monthly fee. You just pay $79.99 for the device plus the cost of a hard drive, if you don’t already have one. If you use DropBox longer than 8 months or SugarSync longer than 16 months, you save. And that is for the lowest premium storage account they have. That is more expensive than iCloud if you don’t use more than 25GB.

Pogoplug Mobile

Cloud v. Local Storage

Pogoplug stores your files on your own hard drive. If you need to access them quickly while at home, you don’t have to wait for a download. You also don’t have to entrust sensitive data to an Internet service that may do all it can to prevent the files from being compromised, but as we have learned with the problem DropBox has had with security, can still be compromised.

In the event that a natural disaster destroys your home or a thief breaks in and steals your equipment, cloud storage does have advantages. I am sure Pogoplug would say that this can be fixed by simply copying the files to a third party’s machine. You will have to decide which is less likely: losing your files due to security breaches by the cloud storage service or losing them due to natural disaster.

Hands On With PogoPlug Mobile at IFA 2011

Xavier Lanier filming at Showstoppers at IFA 2011

Working with Other Pogoplug Software

Pogoplug Mobile Rear

The device works with the desktop client Pogoplug software, mobile apps and the web interface that customers might already use. Pogoplug will update them along with the release of this new device to include more robust file sharing of documents or other files. The media streaming capabilities get a bump as well.When you install the Pogoplug software on your computer, it automatically searches your music, video and photo folders and makes them available to the web interface, other computers through the Internet or to mobile devices through the free Pogoplug app.

The mobile apps can now be configured to automatically backup the videos and photos taken with a camera or tablet. Every picture you take with your iPhone or Android phone will then be uploaded, if you choose to configure the apps with this functionality.

Storage Limitations

The only storage limitation of the new device comes from today’s hard drive size limits. You can currently get a 3TB USB drive for as little as $120. The largest SD Card available comes in 64GB sizes for between $300 and $400.

This new device looks like a great solution, especially if you already have an external hard drive sitting around. We will be doing a full review when they become available.

Pogoplug Mobile Side

Pricing and Availability

You can pre-order the product starting today for $79.99 and it will ship in very early October. Best Buy and other retail partners will have them on the shelf at about the same time. The newly designed software and user interface will be available when it ships.

To learn more about the Pogoplug service and other products, see the video below or go to Pogoplug’s website.

https://youtu.be/-Qch3GKOVYQ

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