Don’t forget to read my review of other databackup softwares including Carbonite and Mozy
Carbonite backup is possibly the most popular cross-platform data backup solution available. Techcrunch termed it as the backup solution closest to perfection they have seen and it is the favourite data backup service according to a Lifehacker poll. Let us take a look at it and find out if it lives up to all the hype.
Installing and configuring Carbonite is dead simple. It integrates itself with the right click context menu of Windows Explorer. You can backup any partition, directory or file by simply right clicking and selecting ‘Back this up’. By default Carbonite backs up everything in the Users (Documents and Settings in XP) folder. By default program files, system files, temporary files, videos and any file above 4gb aren’t backed up. However, you can add them manually. Tiny yellow dots indicate files and folders marked for backup, while green dots indicate files/folders that are already backed-up.
Like most other similar softwares Carbonite allows you to directly access backed up content through Carbonite Backup Drive – which can be accessed from Windows Explorer just like any other hard disk partition. Some other nice touches in Carbonite include the ability to schedule backups and to run it in a low bandwidth mode.
Unlimited storage capacity ensures that you never run out of space. However, reportedly after the first 50 GB, they limit you to 0.5 GB uploads per day. Carbonite features double encryption to ensure that your private data stays private. One potential issue with completely trusting a service like Carbonite is reliability. Carbonite uses RAID 5 array which is cheap but offers limited redundancy. Another annoying aspect of Carbonite is that is refuses to automatically backup many file-types and I couldn’t find anyway to change that. If you wish to backup files that are deemed unnecessary by Carbonite, your only option is to manually back them up – one by one. This certainly goes against Carbonite’s philosophy of being simple.
As more and more users look towards the cloud to backup their critical data services like Carbonite will only continue to grow. In spite of a couple of drawbacks Carbonite is probably the best option available at the moment if you are really serious about your data.
Download Carbonite Backup
Official Website
Version Reviewed : v3.7.3 build 196
Platforms Supported : Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Mac (Intel) OS 10.4 (Tiger) and Mac 10.5 (Leopard)
License : 15 day Free Trial.
Cost : $54.95/year per computer
Carbonite 1 Year License Giveaway
I have a 1 year license of Carbonite (courtsey of Subscription.com), that I am going to give away to 1 lucky reader. You can participate in the contest in any of the following ways :
i) reply to this post (1 entry)
ii) tweet about the contest (2 entries)
Sample tweet
“Win 1 Year License of Carbonite Backup (valued at $54.95) by just commenting : http://tr.im/wingift”
After posting on twitter leave a comment here with the direct link to the tweet.
iii) blog about the contest with a link to this page (5 entries). Don’t forget to tell me about your blogpost by commenting.
The last date for participating in this contest is 26th April.
Not only that, you can save $10.99 if you use the Subscription.com Carbonite Offer. Subscription.com is providing 20% discount on all licenses purchased through them. Don’t forget to check out other offers at subscription.com. They provide discounts on everything from Security Softwares to Dating services.
Hi, thanks for inviting me.
Here are my entries:
- Reply this post
- Tweet the contest at http://twitter.com/erik_son/status/1520958068
- Blog at http://erik-son.net/contest/carbonite-backup-giveaway/
Thanks.
Your blog link returns a 404 error.
Blogged about the contest at http://www.submityourcontest.com/carbonite-backup-license-giveaway/
I’m currently investigating online backup solutions and have been looking at JungleDisk, BackBlaze, Mozy and now Carbonite. I’m reluctant to commit loading loads of data to each service just as part of a short term two week free trial situation, but I suppose I’ll bite the bullet soon. I have about 20Gigs of stuff (mainly photos) I need to backed-up off my machine asap. I’ve had several tragedies with external HDDs – enough to know I need something offsite and reliable. I’m leaning toward Jungledisk at this point, but, to be fair, I haven’t tried Carbonite yet. A 1 year free subscription would help seal the deal one way or another.
Thanks for the review.
Great Product. Thanks
Chronic Chick Talk’s last blog post..Protecting Your Eyes From The Sun
John, I’ve been using SafeCopyBackup.com and am very happy with it. I have a Mac and PC and backup both with a single account for $50 per year. It’s worth checking out.
Troy
This would be great to back up my pictures!
Hi,
Thanks for the prize and the contest. I got it.
I am looking to backup my system, but want something that backs up both the data plus my programs. Does Carbonite do that?
It backs up data, but not installed softwares i.e. related registry entries and system files wont be backed up.
Re backing up programs, you can back up virtually any file with Carbonite – just right click on it and select Carbonite, back this up. Or you can go to Properties and select “Back up all files of this type.” That doesn’t mean, however, that you can restore these files to a new computer and expect the programs to work. Microsoft programs are usually keyed to the specific computer that they are installed on, so if you restore them to a different computer they generally won’t work. For that you can use a program like LapLink to migrate programs from one PC to another. In fact you can migrate your programs to an external hard drive for safekeeping and use Carbonite to automatically back up your data.
I signed up for Carbonite and paid my money. I uploaded the software and started it running. (I am NOT a computer person, but I have a very successful on-line business.) Due to Carbonite’s markers on my desktop, I quickly saw that it just backed up my Windows-based files, but not my huge business database nor my huge jpg files.
So, I sent Carbonite a support request. At least four times. No response.
So, I sent Carbonite a refund request. At least ten times. No response.
Carbonite’s clever new television ads should say, “Carbonite backs up the Window-based files on your desktop. Any other files? You’re on your own. Carbonite will, however, make good use of your money.”
Carbonite for suckers.
You can manually add other file types to your Carbonite backup. By default it only uploads limited number of files like system files.