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The Best Cloud Based Apps for Small Businesses

A full SD card is a thing of the past with these smartphone apps

Dropbox
Cloud-based computing Is vastly altering the storage and bandwidth needs of small businesses, and the next move is to bring the cloud to mobile devices. Here are a few free apps to consider when you’re making the change

Dropbox (Android, iPhone)

This is by far the most popular cloud storage service for individuals, and might be the right pick for your small business, depending on your storage needs. You get 2 GB of storage free, which is all you need if you’re just storing documents and spreadsheets for sharing between devices. With the Dropbox mobile app, you can share and edit files with employees, clients, or partners from your smart phone, so you can instantly and efficiently respond to concerns. If you need to store larger files or backup entire systems, you can upgrade to 50 GB, 100 GB, or 1 TB plans for $99/year, $199/year, and $795/year, respectively. One of the biggest draws of Dropbox is file backup—every version of each file is saved for thirty days, so you don’t have to worry about lost edits or drafts. (Cost: Free)

SugarSync (Android, iPhone)

SugarSync runs in the background on your phone and devices, automatically syncing selected files and folders from any number of devices to your smartphone, so you don’t have to pile everything you want synced into a single file structure like Dropbox. Browser access also allows you to use any computer with an internet connection to edit important files. SugarSync also saves five versions of each document for safety, and so that you can track changes as you collaborate with partners or employees on shared documents. The basic free storage is 5 GB, which might be enough of a selling point to choose it over other cloud storage providers, but more expensive paid plans make it a close second to Dropbox in our estimation. (Cost: Free)

PicPlz (Android, iPhone)

Creating a rich social-networking presence can be the most effective form of advertising for a small business. With PicPlz’s mobile app, you can snap a photo at any time from your smartphone, edit it using 15 tools, and instantly post it to one of seven social-networking platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Tumblr, Posterous, Foursquare). In the absence of an official Instagram app, this is a great way to quickly create hip, classy content to draw in potential customers. Problems reported by users of Samsung phones appear to have been corrected in the latest update, and the app appears to finally be bug-free. (Cost: Free)

Mozy (Android, iPhone)

Mozy and Dropbox have a great deal in common, but Mozy is a no-frills, much cheaper option—only $5.99 for 50 GB, and $9.99 for 125 GB. You lose a fair bit of functionality in the bargain, however: no public file-sharing, no real-time syncing of data (you can schedule periodic backups), and only five computers synced per paid account. This can make a huge difference, even for a small business, since getting Mozy for your home computer, office, and smartphone eats up three of your five allotted devices. Still, if you’re looking for seriously low-cost cloud storage and you have only basic file-sharing needs, Mozy might be a good fit. (Cost: Free)

Google Docs (Android, iPhone)

If all you really need to share between devices is documents and spreadsheets, Google Docs may be the ideal option. While other cloud storage options save conflicting documents separately, Google Docs allows you to edit a document together, in real time, showing who has made which changes in seconds. The benefits of being able to look at and make changes to a document with a client or co-worker in real-time are obvious, and being able to do it from your phone or tablet will make your business far more agile and responsive. (Cost: Free)

By Jane Johnson

Jane Johnson is a staff writer for GoingCellular, a popular site that provides cell phone news, commentary, reviews.

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