Hi, my name is Mauricio.
Welcome to another Cloudwards video review.
Today we’re talking about IDrive, one of our favorite online backup services.
It’s a powerful backup solution, but it’s also not without its issues.
Before we start, let me just remind you to click the like and subscribe buttons if you
get anything out if this review.
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Also let me know in the comments which service you ended up choosing and why.
IDrive is a cloud backup service.
That’s not exactly the same as a cloud storage service like Sync.com or Google Drive, but
there is a lot of overlap.
Cloud storage gives you extra space to store files outside your home devices, and lets
you access those files from anywhere.
Online backup, on the other hand, is about protecting your files from anything that might
cause you to lose them.
That means crashes or even cyberattacks like ransomware.
Anything that makes you go, “Oh crap, I hope I saved.”
It automatically syncs with your computer to save versions of your files that you can
recover if anything happens to the main ones.
Most of the best cloud storage services offer backup features, but IDrive is primarily a
cloud backup service that has added some storage features.
You can use IDrive through a desktop client on Mac and Windows, or as a web app on any
OS including Linux.
It’s also got mobile apps for iOS and Android.
IDrive syncs up with your hard drive to save copies of your files.
If something gets deleted on your hard drive, it’s still there on IDrive along with its
previous versions.
The mobile apps actually back up your mobile device.
Lots of cloud backup services treat their mobile apps as just a remote control for the
desktop client, but IDrive gets that people save important files solely on their phones.
Let’s get a bit deeper into how IDrive backup works.
You can back up your information at any level, from individual files to folders to your entire
hard drive at once.
Backups happen on an hourly or daily cycle, but you can start one manually whenever you
want.
If you’ve got files smaller than 500 MB, you can have IDrive back them up continuously.
IDrive Express is another awesome feature.
If you’ve got a huge drive on the order of terabytes, you’ve probably wished you
could back it up on a physical drive and mail it to your cloud service.
That’s literally what IDrive Express is.
Earlier I mentioned IDrive has some cloud storage features.
You can save files in folders that sync between devices, which don’t count against the storage
on your plan.
So you’ve got essentially twice the storage space.
All the different IDrive clients are user-friendly.
On desktop and the web app, the features are grouped into simple tabs.
Backup controls what gets backed up, Restore lets you restore lost files, et cetera.
The mobile app is more stripped-down, since it’s mainly focused on protecting your photos
and videos.
OK, let’s talk pricing.
IDrive has a free plan that lets you back up 5 GB.
You can get personal plans that grant 2 TB for $5.79 per month or 5 TB for $8.29 per
month.
Depending on the current discounts you might pay as low as 50$ in the first year for 5
TB.
You can only buy annually though, which makes it a bit more of an investment at first.
If you’re not sure about committing, the free plan is a great way to test the service
out.
Every plan backs up an unlimited number of devices, and the business plans let you bring
unlimited users onboard.
The downside is no plan gives you unlimited storage.
Some cloud backups like Backblaze do offer that.
We’ve linked to our iDrive vs. Backblaze review in the video description.
The real drawback with IDrive is speed.
Most users are going to be uploading gigabytes of data at a time.
IDrive takes about two and a half hours to upload a 3.5-gig mixed-media folder, and about
one hour fifteen minutes to download it.
American users might see better speeds, but for everyone else it’s on the slow side.
Most people will face the decision if they should go with IDrive or Backblaze.
It’s a tough one to answer because it really depends on your situation.
I tend to recommend Backblaze to people who’re not very tech savvy because it’s just set
it and forget it, plus it offers unlimited online backup.
IDrive on the other hand has many more customization options, so you can really drill down into
the settings menu and configure your backups how you want them.
If you have a lot of devices then go with IDrive, because Backblaze only backs up one
computer per license.
Also with Backblaze, keep in mind you need to connect all your devices to their cloud
at least once every 30 days for your files to remain on their servers.
That’s it for our high-level review of IDrive.
I hope I’ve been able to help you make a decision about whether it’s the cloud storage
you want.
If you liked this video, one more time, don’t forget to hit like and subscribe so we can
keep spreading it around.
Thanks for watching.