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Court order stops Bitcasa from deleting your cloud data, for now (updated)
If you're miffed that Bitcasa not only dropped its unlimited cloud storage option but made you migrate to a costlier limited tier just to keep your files, you'll be glad to hear that you're getting a reprieve. Angry customers have filed a tentative class action lawsuit against Bitcasa for allegedly breaching its contract through the sudden switch. In tandem with the suit, the court handling the case has granted a restraining order that forces Bitcasa to save those files until at least November 20th. That's not exactly a long interval, but there's a hearing on the 19th that could extend the grace period further.
Bitcasa drops its unlimited cloud storage due to underuse (and abuse)
If you were thinking of milking Bitcasa's unlimited cloud storage for all it's worth, you'd better have an alternative lined up. The company is dropping its signature Infinite storage option after November 15th, in tandem with an upgrade to new infrastructure. You'll have to migrate to a limited tier (such as the new 10TB, $999 per year Pro plan) if you want to keep all your content. Why the sudden clampdown? According to Bitcasa, you probably weren't using it -- only 0.1 percent of its accounts chew through more than 10TB. Moreover, some of those that are consuming that much space are reportedly abusing it at a level which "seems impossible" for any one person. The company hasn't elaborated on what these nogoodniks are doing beyond violating the terms of service, but it's easy to see a company trying to use Bitcasa as a makeshift storage server.
Bitcasa's infinite cloud storage balloons to $999 a year
If you thought Bitcasa's infinite cloud storage was too sweet of a deal to exist on this mortal plane for $99 a year, that's because it was -- or at least partly because the bulk of subscribers filled up far less of their digital lockers than expected. According to the outfit, 98 percent of its customers use less than five terabytes of data, and 92 percent "do not store anywhere close to a terabyte." In addition, the firm says a survey of its customers revealed they valued more features over additional space. As result, the unlimited service will now cost $999 a year, or $99 per month, and the company will focus on making the platform more useful, starting with a freshly-released API. Free accounts have been tweaked to start at 5GB (as opposed to 10GB), and the $99 per year (or $10 a month) tier now nets 1TB of space. For those with even more bits to squirrel away, 5TB can be had by contributing $499 a year (or $49 each month) to Bitcasa's coffers. Existing subscribers will get to keep their current plan's rates and storage, but won't get access to some new offerings -- such as the future Linux client -- unless they switch to the new pricing scheme. Tencent's free 10TB of online storage might sound even more tempting now, but it's worth taking this instance as an example of what could happen to your cloud paradise.
Bitcasa leaves beta, offers discount on Infinite Drive to celebrate
Bitcasa made some serious waves when it hit the scene in December, offering bottomless cloud storage for $10 per-month or $99 for a full year. The service is now leaving beta, with the promised Mac and iOS apps in tow. And, just as icing on the cake, a Linux client is also on the way (and already available in alpha form). While going gold isn't going to change a lot about Bitcasa in the short term, at least the company knows how to celebrate right -- with steep discounts! Sign up for the service during the month of February and you'll get a full year of Infinite Drive for $60 $69. You can sign up at the source and peruse the PR after the break. We're already busy backing up our My Bloody Valentine bootlegs. Update: As some of you have noticed, the price being advertised on the Bitcasa site is $69 for the year, not $59 as the press release states. We've updated the post to reflect the advertised cost and asked for a clarification.
Bitcasa brings limitless cloud storage to Android and Windows 8 today, iOS in January
Bitcasa has offered truly unlimited cloud storage for awhile, but only desktop users have had access to more than an HTML5 page. Now that there's native Infinite Drive apps for Android, Windows 8 and Windows RT, that dream of having access to everything, everywhere just got more tangible. The new apps stream media in a native player and offer two-way file access, no matter the size or quantity -- if your life's work is in the cloud, your Surface can see it. Android users can also link their camera app to Bitcasa to guarantee an instant photo backup, and any file is shareable with those who haven't signed up. We're promised both an iOS version and a finished Mac app in early January. The $10 monthly subscription is relatively cheap when there's no ceiling to what the service can hold; just try not to stream a 1080p movie from that capped mobile connection if you're not a fan of overage fees.
