Mobile Cloud Computing with a Twist…

HD: New paradigm and extension of cloud computing - Mobile cloud storage:-

You take out your phone to click a random photograph and suddenly, a message pops up after clicking that your device storage is full! This could be life-shattering technical hurdle for many mobile-addict users today. What do you do in this case? Delete a few files that were less important but not completely unimportant or do you wedge for other options like download the photos to your PC, but by that time that spontaneous moment when you could have captured the photo has gone. Now, ponder about the cloud storage option on your phone. It could really be a savior.

Though we all want to buy the best smart phones available in the market, we don’t really want to understand these expensive pieces of instruments in detail. Buying phones with the largest inbuilt storage has become the ‘IT’ thing today, but only a few people fathom the fact that there is huge, endless cloud storage that one can opt for lesser cost to save photos, videos and other files. However, the reality is we don’t really utilize the option of ‘cloud storage’ on our smart phones.

Mobile cloud storage:-

Also called as pocket cloud storage, personal cloud storage or storage on the go, mobile cloud storage is a type of cloud storage used to store mobile device data. Simply put, mobile cloud storage means that files can be saved on cloud from the phone. Once stored on the cloud the data can be accessed anywhere and at any time on the phone albeit with internet connectivity. Thus, this platform helps sync and share data with other multiple devices like other phones, tablets, PCs and laptops.

Phones have to utilize cloud storage services to complete tasks efficiently due to limited storage, energy and computational power in them. Offloading service is also available on this platform; it means that tasks which are computation-heavy can be moved to cloud to save battery and CPU usage.

Apple iCloud, Google Drive and Amazon Dropbox are some of the leading mobile cloud storage providers in the market; they all provide limited free cloud storage to users and also paid services that are usually distributed in monthly subscription offers depending on the desired storage. Mobile device manufacturers also give inbuilt cloud storage option. Also, Apple devices come with pre-configured mobile cloud storage -- iCloud. For several android phones, Google Drive has become a preloaded option where users can also back up their device data. 

However, Dropbox apart from subscription runs a referral program which allows users to earn free Dropbox space by referring and get up to 16GB for lifetime.

Experts Say:-

Techies recommend that all those things that occupy mobile space like videos and photos should be offloaded to a cloud ASAP. If you do this with a free service most of your photos and videos are going to be resized; you will have to pay up if you want to store them in full resolution. However, there are several cloud storage apps and varied rate structures to choose from in case you want them in the original quality at low cost. 

The major benefits of using the mobile cloud storage platform include:

   1.  Unlimited storage: Your phone will have only a few MBs and GBs of storage for videos, photos, files, applications and data, but a cloud platform has virtually limitless storage which can go up to terabytes.

   2.  Accessible: All this stored data can be accessed on any device at anytime and anywhere. The only requirement is internet connectivity in the form of Wi-Fi or cellular signal.

   3.  Safe: Mobile cloud storage is much more secure than your phone storage. Your phone can get lost, damaged or stolen, but your mobile cloud account will remain in the virtual space forever.

Computing:-

Though the smart phone is a technical wonder and can do several local tasks perfectly, it still has several computational limits. Mobile cloud computing comes in to picture here where all the ‘heavy lifting’ can be performed. Monikered as the ‘Third Platform’ by the International Data Corporation (IDC), mobile cloud computing actually means cloud computing where at least a few of the connected devices are mobile. It brings together mobile computing, cloud computing and wireless networks in order to increase capabilities of mobile devices using offloading techniques. A mobile cloud allows for improved access, management of data, better scalability and dependability.

Tagged as the most important branches of cloud computing today, mobile cloud eliminates the limitations of software and hardware upgradations in mobile phones that occur due to its size. It helps resource intensive tasks to be performed on the cloud and results be sent to the mobile phone. Meanwhile, mobile cloud computing extends all benefits of cloud computing like zero downtime, low cost, hardware-less solution, flexibility, scalability, and others.

Along with all these advantages, the biggest disadvantage of mobile cloud is data security that experts are trying to resolve. Smart phone users very often give sensitive details through the network. If not protected with encryptions, passwords or other techniques, it can lead to a disaster in case of a security breach.

In conclusion, it can be said that mobile cloud storage has surfaced as a new paradigm and extension of cloud storage and is expected to grow quickly in the coming time.