Data Backup Digest

We all know about the available cloud providers, most of them from big technology companies like Google and Microsoft. There is an abundance of them. There’s even those available from business vendors like Oracle and Dell.

The problem with storing your data in the cloud is that you must pay a subscription. Some providers bravely offer a lifetime subscription, though “lifetime” just equates to how long their business stays afloat for.

HoitBox want to do something different. Branding themselves as easy mass cloud storage with no subscription fees, HoitBox are a company based in Dover, Delaware, currently raising funds for their project through Kickstarter. It has until January 2020 to meet its goal of $60,000 in an all or nothing project.

HoitBox is designed to centralise your data into a single location. If you’re the type of person who has data scattered across different cloud services, phones and computers, and storage devices, it’s time to bring them together.

While setting up your own cloud is a difficult prospect for most, HoitBox simplifies the process. You don’t need to worry about renting a server from someone or concerning yourself with what a static IP, MAC address, or port forwarding is. Everything is handled behind the scenes.

The HoitBox is a physical container that comes in three different sizes, each with a different number of bays. The largest contains the base and three bays, which supports a range of 3 to 24 TB. This means that you can expand your storage as your needs increase. Unlike competitors like the DiskStation or My Cloud Home Duo, the chassis is stackable.

Of course, the selling point here is the simplicity. The Kickstarter claims that Hoitbox can be setup in less than 30 seconds and the sales video is certainly convincing. All you need to do is pair your device via Bluetooth and connect to your network via Wi-Fi.

You can store your Hoitbox wherever you please, in your home or in your office. Unlike a third-party provider, you know exactly where that physical data is located. Bear in mind this also means you are responsible for its privacy – while larger companies will be using secure data centres that are monitored round the clock, your Hoitbox is as fallible as anything else in your home. That’s why you should use it as a storage solution, not a backup one, since you shouldn’t keep two copies of data in the same place as it fails the redundancy test.

When you’re away from the physical box, you can access your data through the free Hoitbox cloud app. This will be available on iOS, Android, and via the web. There’s no monthly cost for this service, nor for the box itself, though it remains to be seen how you can access your data remotely if those services shut down.

Should the funding target be successfully reached, the company aim to hardware test in February, software test in April, mass produce in June, ship in August, and finally deliver in September. Kickstarter projects are notorious for falling behind schedules though, so consider those optimistic estimations if you do back.