Dropbox, the popular cloud storage service, is offering 5 GB of free storage to users who test Dropbox’s current Beta applications.
Usually, this sort of news is announced via a press release, but instead, Dropbox distributed the information in the notes of the latest software build. This odd method of announcement makes this look like a fairly sudden decision revolving around the need for an immediate, large scale test.
It is important to note this is a Beta Test, and there are no guarantees that those doing the test won’t experience adverse effects upon the devices and date involved.
The purpose of this program is to test the automatic upload of one’s media files (specifically pictures and videos). The storage space is given proportionally with the amount of media stored. For the first picture uploaded, the user will receive 500 MB of storage. For each 500 MB used thereafter, another 500 MB is offered. The total amount maxes out at 5 GB.
I think this is a great way to test services and see how viral an announcement can go. I will definitely be signing up for the service; though I’ll initially only use it on an older computer I have sitting around. Additionally, I’m keeping very aware of the recent Megaupload debacle and won’t let this service be the sole location I store my data.
Do you plan on giving Dropbox’s beta test a try?
