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Why i switched from Dropbox to Wuala

updated October 27, 2014

Update Oct 2014: I switched to BitTorrent Sync in the meantime. Wuala is still great, but cancelling their free storage.

I have been using Dropbox just to sync my Keepass database. It's no secret that Dropbox data transmission is not encrypted, neither is their data storage. To use Dropbox securely, a Truecrypt volume must be synced, but special settings would be necessary so that not the entire volume gets synced every time you make a small change somewhere.

My business data was synced with MobileMe and iDisk, but I didn't really like that a lot. I'd had an eye on Wuala for some time now, but their pricing was always rather discouraging.

Because of Dropbox' lasting security issues and their bold security lie, Wuala has reacted, providing all their functionalities (including 1GB) for free. I'd been waiting for just that! In a minute, MobileMe got canceled, Dropbox was deleted and replaced by Wuala. There are Wuala clients for every platform, including iOS and Android.

Switching to Wuala has nothing but advantages for experienced users. I must admit that Dropbox has got the more intuitive interface, which may also explain its previous success. But after the latest incidents, Dropbox should be a no-go for everyone.

On the net you can find all reasons why Wuala is better than Dropbox, here I will just pitch on the points that particularly appeal to me:

  • local data encryption, zero knowledge on the part of Wuala (i.e. if you forget the Wuala password, unsynced data is lost)
  • flexible file and folder syncing, not just one global folder like with Dropbox

Wuala has one drawback though: For folders shared with non-Wuala contacts, a "secret" weblink is generated, through which the shared data can be accessed. To make this totally secure, the link would have to be sent encrypted, which is not always possible. That means, only sharing between Wuala accounts is 100% secure.

I am really pleased so far. If you want a little more disk space, there is a multitude of promo codes, just google for them.