IDrive Review 2019 – The Best and Cheap Cloud Storage Plan

IDrive is a backup cloud storage plan intended for home and small business users. It has a mobile app, where you can use on Android and iOS. The Windows desktop interface is simple. You can just right-click a folder on your computer and sync to IDrive. This makes it easy to backup important files and folders to the cloud.

If you want 5 TB of cloud backup and storage for $6.95 in the first year, IDrive should be your choice. This company started in 1995, specializing in data backup applications. Its main product is an online backup service available in Windows, Mac, iOS and Android users.

IDrive Review of Desktop App

In the desktop application the following items are available.

1. Backup
2. Restore
3. Scheduler
4. Sync
5. Server Backup
6. Settings

You can backup files to your IDrive account or local location like another data drive. This will include folders like Desktop, Documents, Music, Pictures and Videos. These are the default folders in the system drive.

You can add contents for backup and schedule them at a predefined timing. The Express device is a physical storage location to which you can backup.

One can restore the files or folders stored in IDrive to the local drive. If you have multiple devices that are backed up, you can select the correct device based upon on its name. You can decide the restore location. One major feature is that you can save bandwidth, by selectively choosing only few files or folders to restore to your computer.

If there are any new files in your default backup location, you can schedule them on days and at particular time. If the computer is off during that time, it will start once the computer is turned on.

Another great feature of IDrive is the “Sync” folder.

Once you have set a particular folder on your computer as “sync” location, you can drop files and folders in it. Then these are synced to IDrive and all the devices connected to IDrive. You can move the sync folder location later if you want and all the contents are moved to the new place.

There are some advanced server backup settings available.

The Continuous Data Protection checks the file version continuously. Whenever there is a change in the backup set of files, it will automatically start the backup process. One create a system image backup of the whole drive or OS, which includes operating system and its relevant information.

This is useful when you want to restore a corrupted OS, back to working condition. The Activity log of all the backups, restore and sync operations are stored in logs. This can be seen by clicking the “View logs” button.

The IDrive icon stays in the system tray even after closing it. When you right-click it, several options are available. You can pause, resume sync and go to sync folder, using this option. If the IDrive application is closed, you can also start it.

You can send error reports, request online help, disable web access and do many things. If you want to use a VPN, you can set the proxy settings also here. You can also exclude specific folders and files from backup. Also if you want full upload and download speed, you can set the throttle value to 100%.

But if you are working on other Internet operations, you can move the throttle value slider to a lower value. Another specific feature which is available in Google Drive, but not in OneDrive, is to sync any custom folder on your computer. You can add any folder of your choice, by right-clicking it, and add it to backup set.

What are the Speed Benchmarks

If you want to know how fast the upload and download speeds from IDrive, you can see the reviews from these sites. Even though you have high gigabyte internet speed, it is not possible to use the 100% bandwidth. In the new version of IDrive, there have been a few changes which meets the bandwidth demand. Also you can see, how the files and folders are syncing to IDrive in the desktop app.

We used GlassWire to monitor upload and download speeds in Windows, and the built-in Resource Monitor to track computer usage. We conducted our tests using TDS Telecom Extreme 300 (up to 300 Mbps down and up) home internet service in Middleton, Wisconsin. Real-world speeds during testing were typically closer to 280 Mbps down and 120 Mbps up, according to speedtest.net.

Our initial upload of 16.8GB of files using IDrive’s standard settings took approximately 1 hour and 32 minutes, an average data-transfer speed of 26.1 megabits per second (Mbps). This was far and away the fastest upload time of any of the cloud-backup services we tested in 2018.

Source :  tomsguide.com

Another interesting case-study on speeds of IDrive can be seen from PCMag.com

IDrive’s backup performance is only average. Its time of 1:50 (minutes:seconds) on this test is slower than both Acronis True Image’s 0:51 and SOS Online Backup’s 1:17. It was, however, well ahead of MozyHome’s 2:43 and SugarSync’s 3:37. Take a look at how the rest of the online backup services fared in the chart below

The following features are available in IDrive

• Multiple Device Backup
• Online File Sync
• IDrive Express
• Snapshots and Versioning
• Manage Computers
• Disk Image Backup
• Security and Privacy
• Real Time Backup
• Go Mobile
• Retrieve Data

You can use IDrive to backup unlimited devices which includes PCs, Macs, iPhone, iPad, Android and many more. If you link all your devices with IDrive, then your files and folders will be synced in real time.

There is an option to get all your backup and retrieval of data on a physical storage using IDrive Express. Snapshots is an interesting feature which provides historical view of your files. This will help against ransomware. IDrive stores about 30 revisions of your files and folders in the latest version.

 

Disk Image backup makes it easy to backup your entire OS as an image file. This will include your OS settings, files, folders etc with information and content. Transfer of files and folders is possible with 256-bit AES encryption and user defined private key, which is not stored on IDrive servers.

Restoration of files and folders to the preferred device using web interface or desktop app, is possible. In this way, you will never lose your files and folder, even after the account expires.

What are the Pricing Plans of IDrive

The basic plan covers 5 GB of free storage. The IDrive Personal plan is currently priced at $52.12 for first year and $104.25 for 2 years for 2 TB of storage. It is for a limited time only. The 5 TB plan costs $74.62/year and $149.25 for 2 years. If you prefer the IDrive Business, it costs $74.62 for first year and $149.25 for 2 years. This is a 250 GB plan.

The Personal plan is for one user and unlimited computers. The Business plan is for unlimited users, unlimited computers and servers. For a limited time, you can get 5 TB of cloud backup for $6.95 on the first year.

But to get this best offer, you have to show proof that you are using paid competing cloud backup service. Competing services include Carbonite, Mozy, CrashPlan, Backblaze, SOS Online Backup, Dropbox and Google Backup and Sync.

IDrive Review – Details in the Web Interface

On the left-hand side you can see the following options.
1. Backup
2. Sync
3. Dashboard
4. Timeline
5. Shared by Me
6. Shared with Me
7. Web Logs
8. IDrive Express

Since you can backup many devices, the list of computers, mobiles, Macs etc are listed in the Backup tab. These are listed by device names. When you right-click any device, you have two options.

1. Delete
2. Details

The second option is very useful. You can find the size of the backup and number of files stored in it.

In the Sync, you can upload files and folders. One can also create a new folder. When you install IDrive on your computer, these automatically sync with that folder. Also when you drop files and folders in the IDrive sync folder on your PC, they are listed here.

The Timeline feature shows the files based upon month, year category. When you double-click any photo, it is displayed in the browser itself. There is also option to share your file or folder with other users.

All the web images357 will be available in the “Sync” folder.

The size of the files is also visible when you dig deep. When you right-click any folder the following options are available.

1. Share
2. Download
3. Delete
4. Details

The last option is very useful. You can know the folder size, file count, modified date. In the Dashboard, you have Settings option. Here you have 3 tabs.

1. General 2. Backup 3. Scheduler

The Continuous Data Protection (CDP) feature automatically recognizes the changes made to the backup set (files/folders). The backup will start within the specified time, when there are changes to the backup set. You also get different alerts and notifications.

The Bandwidth throttle is another useful feature. Here you can set the Internet bandwidth usage by the application while the computer is in use for backups.

The throttle value can be set here and also when the PC in use. The Archive cleanup cleans all the files which are not available on your PC. It makes sure that there is a one-to-one match between the computer and IDrive.

You can also schedule your backup based on day and time. You will get email notification and on desktop. If the schedule backup is missed, it will start when the computer is turned on.

There is also thumbnail and list view to see the list of devices and folders. You can also see the space occupied by clicking your email username. The Weblogs will show you when you logged into your account. You can set the custom dates here.

For complete detailed instructions on how to use IDrive on the web and desktop, you can see the video tutorial here.