After Dropbox on Friday made it easier to move digital photos from smartphones to cloud, the debate as to whether Dropbox itself is the next big disruptor or just a feature to be acquired or co-opted flared anew. The debate boils down to whether the web needs a neutral storage service that works pretty well with all the major technology platforms, or if ease of use and synching is paramount.
By all accounts, Dropbox provides a slick way to upload and store digital paraphernalia in the cloud. From there, users can access their stuff from any device and sync files across devices. The service has been hugely popular — as of four months ago, Dropbox claimed 45 million users. But the success of the five-year-old company has bred imitators and competitors including the biggest companies in tech.
The new private camera upload feature will let users take their photos as always but then easily move them from smartphone or tablet or camera or SD card to their cloud data trove using Wi-Fi or their cellular data plans. Dropbox uploads the photos and videos in their original size and full resolution to the user's camera upload location. The feature is available now for Android phones with Windows, Mac, and iOS support to come, Dropbox said.
Those who forget history …
The cautionary tale for Dropbox is that the best technology doesn't always win. (I would insert the Betamax vs. VHS argument here, but no one remembers it anymore.) Should Microsoft or Apple or Google offer at least reasonably good cross-platform file storage and sync capabilities, Dropbox will be in trouble. Working in Dropbox's favor is that CEO Drew Houston appears acutely aware of history.
According to this Forbes Magazine account, when Apple announced iCloud, Houston shot off a memo to employees, reaffirming the company's status as one of the fastest-growing companies in the world. Then, he listed several other once-fast-growing companies: MySpace, Netscape, Palm, and Yahoo.
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