How to choose an online data backup solution

There are a number of online data backup solutions on the market today, many of them offering completely automated protection for your precious files. They’re a great way to get some peace of mind and feel secure from hard drive crashed because it’s a “set it and forget it” situation, with new and changed files automatically protected and backed up to the cloud. But how do you choose one? We’ve outlined the key factors that you should consider in your decision making process.

For full reviews of the top solutions on the market, check out our data backup review.

Storage Space – Basic plans of data backup solutions typically offer around 50-75GB, with more space available for an upgrade. Some solutions, like Carbonite, advertise “unlimited” storage, but throttle upload speeds way down after 200GB of data. So what’s the best solution for you? This depends on the size of your backup? If you’re in the 50GB range, you may want to choose based on the other criteria below. For 75GB – 200GB backups, Carbonite is the obvious choice. Larger than that, we’d suggest investing in a premium plan.

Speed – Data upload speed is critically important, especially for especially large backups. Before choosing data backup solution, check the upload speeds for those on your list (usually listed as Mbps or Kbps). Remember, 1MB = 1,000KB, so choose appropriately. We found SOS Online backup to provide the fastest speeds in the industry, but feel free to do your own research and choose wisely.

Devices covered – Consider how many household devices you’d like covered under this subscription and choose a data backup accordingly. Many solutions will only protect one PC at a time, but some, like SOS Online backup for example, cover up to five household devices at once. That’s a great value, if you can take advantage of it.

Automation – Never choose a data backup solution that doesn’t offer fully automated protection. You want to be able to set up your initial backup, and then never have to think about it again. New files and changed files should both be backed up automatically, without question. Data sync services like Skydrive and Dropbox are great for working on files remotely, but the lack of automation makes them a poor choice for data backup.

Encryption – When choosing on online data backup solution, make sure that you research the level of encryption done both during uploads and while in storage. We prefer a triple level, military grade level of encryption which encrypts files once while still on the PC, again during transfer, and then a third time in the cloud.

Support – Before making a final decision, take a look at the support options that the options you are considering offer. We prefer a full line of options, including chat, phone, and email support. You may never need it, but having someone available to walk you through recovering your data should the worst of the worst happen, will be a life saver.

Galaxy S4

The Samsung Galaxy S4 was announced this week to much Apple-esque fanfare. Expectations were through the roof, and the rumor mill churned in overtime for the weeks and months leading up to the unveiling. But when the dust had settled, many of the Geeks that had salivated over the announcement were left feeling a bit let down. But why? Why are a list of eye popping specs and futuristic features no longer enough to satisfy our geeky appetites?

 Because like it or not, we’ve officially reached the point of diminishing returns with mobile devices, that’s why.

So what exactly does that mean? It means that the huge leaps forward that new mobile devices like the original iPhone and SIII brought are a thing of the past, replaced instead by less dramatic incremental evolutions of simple speeds and feeds. Yes, the S4’s quad core processor, 1080p screen, and 13MP camera look impressive on paper, but will those specs really translate into a better user experience? Not really, at least not until those specs become standard and software developers catch up to the hardware. And though slick features like Air Gestures and Smart Pause may entice some to make the leap to the S4, how many of those features will actually be used on a daily basis? (Quick poll, SIII owners – how many files have you actually transferred via S Beam? Yeah, me neither.)

 Reaching this point of diminished returns is hardly a death knell for a technology, and frankly, may not even be a bad thing at all. In recent years, we’ve seen others bump up against it, (desktops a few years ago and what they are now becoming for example) and continue on. Often reaching this point is a precursor for a major revolution in the technology, vs. the series of evolutions that we’re starting to see. So the question then is what will be mobile’s revolution and who will be the one to bring it market? Will it be the iPhone 6? The S5? Or a different player entirely? Do you think mobile is due for a revolution soon or will we continue to see the evolution of the current technology and increasingly diminished returns?

 Geeky Product Reviews is the premier site for tech reviews of popular consumer products. Our editors are who friends and family come to for advice before buying a new cell phone or desktop PC. Neighbors stop us on the street to help them choose their next eReader. We've even been cornered in Best Buy for a recommendation on a new TV. I guess we just have that look.