By Kurt Baumann
AIS Network Chairman
The Apple iPad certainly has its fans and critics, and I, for one, am a fan. I know, I know…there isn’t any flash, multitasking, or USB available. But I find I can do many of the things I had before done on my laptop, and my iPad is just easy to have, use and take along. When I am actually creating files, I prefer my laptop, but much of the time I am in consumption mode (reading emails, Web pages or files) and the iPad fits the bill. That aside, the iPad all of a sudden seems to have shed some light on storage services that were previously available and, all of a sudden, seem shiny and new.
Because the iPad, along with other tablet computers, smartphones and netbooks have a lack of storage (for tablets, it’s usually 64 GB or less) and (often) file systems, cloud storage will become the primary storage for these devices. Additionally Sync services will see growth as a result of these devices, because it becomes confusing which files are the most recent versions when you are accessing files from multiple devices.
Another market area that is likely to see growth from the introduction of these devices is enterprise-grade Storage as a Service Providers (sometimes called Enterprise Cloud File Services) that integrate into the corporate environment. Unlike consumers, the enterprise will demand security, backup, and ease of sharing among team members. AIS Network will be offering its Enterprise Cloud File in the following months. We would love to hear from you on what features you, our customers, would like to see. Feel free to send me email at kdb@aisn.net.
Consumer Cloud-Based Storage Providers: divShare, Carbonite, Box.net , and Dropbox
Consumer Sync Providers: SugarSync, MobileMe