Storegate Review

This review was last updated on April 13th, 2016.

Storegate is an online storage solution that mainly focuses on data backup and sharing files with family or friends. The service they provide allows you to store those precious files such as photos with facilitated access to all of them on the go on a variety of platforms. Storegate offers a free trial for users to test out their service risk free.

Price Plans

The pricing plan starts with a free trial available to users to get a feel for the service and scale from there. There is a home, business, enterprise, and service provider plan available. The home plans start at 25 GB data for $8 monthly and goes up to $30 for 100 GB of data. While business plans can cost up to $45 USD for online file servers, this plan provides a vast array of features.

Their plans cater to different needs within businesses or individuals; although to be honest with you they are very expensive for the small amount of storage they provide you with, other cloud based services will offer you unlimited storage for the price they charge.

Features

A good amount of features are offered for backup and file sharing your data as needed. Including the following;

• Automated Backup
• Live Sync
• Web Portal
• Mobile App support
• File Sharing
• Password protect files
• Share files via social networks

One of the best features about Storegate is the fact they offer you the ability to automatically secure files and back them up in real time or to a predetermined schedule, this means that wherever you are you can rest assured that all your data is being backed up to any specific requirements you may have.

The cloud service also gives you the ability to share any files internally and externally, they even offer you the ability to set personal passwords for protected sharing. The cloud platform provides features such as a drag and drop interface made popular by brands like Dropbox, this makes the overall experience of using their service to the user as quick and efficient which importantly saves you time.

 

Storegate has unique features that act as a unique selling point and helps differentiate the service they offer compared to other competitors in the cloud based services industry. One unique selling point comes through the user’s ability to edit within their secure cloud system; business clients can access and edit files without ever having to download documents, all you have to do is open the file through either the desktop or the mobile app and make changes- these synced files allow for changes that can be viewed by others and this feature works especially well when you are collaborating on projects.

Security

On the data security side of things, Storegate does a good job of keeping your data safe. The service they provide offers high level SSL encryption with all data transfers that starts with the upload from your computer/device. Their redundant servers also help guarantee your files are safely secured in their data centers no matter the situation. Theses servers are monitored 24/7 with geo-redundant backup locations.

Before your personal information even leaves Storegate’s servers it is encrypted with 256- AES encryption so you can rest assured your data is secured. Another great security feature they have built into their system is the fact you can add passwords to designated view folders, they also provide an administrative panel that allows you to make sub-accounts and means you can designate roles within the system.

Speed

Storegate had moderately fast upload speeds when compared with their competitors. On an ADSL line with 5Mbps download speed and 1Mbps upload speed, I was able to transfer a 135MB video file in under 26 minutes. Users with faster Internet connections will experience faster speeds (of course). Storegate services are generally fast whether you’re using their service through their desktop software, web, or mobile apps. Their web portal is efficient in the management of your files. The automated backups run efficiently, avoiding hogging your computer resources when most needed. Transfer speeds always nearly topped my bandwidth and fiber tests.

Data Backup Capabilities

Storegate allows for backup of all important file types and media like your photos, videos, and documents. You can easily store them within private or public shared folders once uploaded to their service. The app even offers automated backup services so you don’t have to worry about manually backing up, this is a great feature that saved you time although to be honest with you it is hardly unique.

Data Restore Capabilities

You can easily go into the Storegate apps or interface to restore any files or folders from your account that you may have previously uploaded. I did not see any available feature for file versioning or any advanced restoration. This means that you’re relying on being able to restore only the files you may have backed up in the past which remains sufficient for most file types .

Support

Their support system features a knowledge base system that has a decent amount of help forums for users to get answers to common issues. However beyond that, it only offers a basic ticket/e-mail system for users to reach them. There isn’t any live chat or direct phone line number.

Conclusion

Storegate offers quality backup utilities and app support across the board. It’s coupled with a clean and easy interface and more importantly safe and secure backup capabilities. However boiling down to price and plans this is where the service tends to be lacking, they offer low storage for prices that most cloud solutions offer 10x storage.  None the less, the free trial gives anyone the capability to give Storegate a try before signing up and they do have some unique features that may interest some users.

Pros:

• File sharing features allows users to create custom links to files
• Can send file sharing links directly to recipients through email
• Free 2GB storage

Cons:

• No unlimited storage option
• Isn’t as feature-rich as some of the leading competitors