Data Backup Digest

Bitcasa is a new cloud storage service that launched in the middle of last year. It joins tech giants Google and Microsoft in the battle to be the best cloud provider.
Bitcasa offers a number of features that it believes make it the first choice for users. They put an emphasis on security, offering client-side encryption. This means that all the files are encrypted before they’ve been transferred from the computer. The Bitcasa staff can’t view the files and it’s apparently “bank-grade security and ultimate privacy”.
Additionally, Bitcasa makes it easy to share your files with others, offers automatic backup with time machine versioning and a simple mobile streaming interface from a variety of different OS apps.
Now, Bitcasa have announced that they are offering unlimited storage in Europe. Previously this feature was only available in the United States after being launched last December. Bitcasa are currently offering unlimited storage for £7/€8 per month or £55/€60 a year. This is a limited time pricing structure and the prices will go up by 20% at the end of August – simply enter “UKEU20” at the checkout to get the discount. Those of you looking to invest in the service should do so now to get the best bang for your buck. If you’re in the US, the same service will set you back $10 a month or $99 a year.
The unlimited storage service is the only pricing plan offered by Bitcasa. The only other account you can have is for free with 10 GB of storage.
Those choosing to opt for the ‘Infinite’ plan will not only be able to store as many files as they wish, but also get infinite file version history as well as chat and email support.
"Instead of having a hard drive, imagine if you could install software that acts as a virtual hard drive but literally never runs out of space, and you can instantly access and share that content on any device you own. This is Bitcasa," explained CEO and co-founder of Bitcasa, Tony Gauda.
Around 30% of Bitcasa’s current customers are in Europe, with around 5% of those being in the United Kingdom. It makes total sense for Bitcasa to roll out their infinite storage plan to Europeans if they want to go up against some of their larger competitors. The company also added a data centre in Ireland in order to ensure fast upload speeds and streaming performance.
To coincide with the announcement, Bitcasa also revealed that they have updated their mobile page design, enhanced performance and added support for ten new languages (including French, Italian, German and Spanish).
Bitcasa is available for Windows, Mac, Android and iOS, ensuring that the service is accessible on a whole range of devices. Time will tell how successful their unlimited storage plans are. It’s a severe undercut on competing services such as Dropbox, Drive or SkyDrive, so it’ll be interesting to see if users begin to stray over from these larger, more well known providers.