3 Reasons to Use Online Computer Backup

1. You'll save some dough.

When you use an unlimited online computer backup service like Carbonite or Mozy, your cost per Gigabyte decreases as the amount of data you backup online increases.

Here is one way to look at it: If you backup 50 gigabytes (GB) to Carbonite, it will cost you $1.10 per gigabyte, per year. If you backup 100 gigabytes (GB) to Carbonite, it will cost you only $0.55 per gigabyte, per year. The more you store, the cheaper it gets, per gigabyte (GB).

It's "All you can eat" data backup for one low price.

With traditional methods of backing up, like CD's, DVD's, tape, and external hard drives, etc., your costs go up as you buy more devices and media for additional space.

With the proliferation of digital cameras and camcorders the amount of data that the average user possesses is growing fast.

If you have a lot of data then you will certainly want to consider an unlimited online backup solution.

2. Backing up online is far more secure.

The average user can't come close to achieving the level of security offered by the top online computer backup service providers. Carbonite and Mozy, for example, use state-of-the-art data storage centers and security methods to fully safeguard your valuable information.

With the risk of hardware failure, accidental deletion, theft, fire, etc.--not to mention viruses and spyware becoming a bigger problem by the day, it simply makes sense to take advantage of the security that the major online backup companies offer.

Furthermore, it is much more likely that you will experience loss of data due to hardware failure than Carbonite or Mozy. Statistically, 1 in 12 hard drives will fail within the first two years of service. Want to trust a single hard drive with your wedding videos, or baby pictures considering those odds?

So, if hard drives fail so often how can you protect your data? Well, you can spend tens of thousands of dollars building a state-of-the-art backup center. Or, you can let Carbonite make the investment in equipment. They will then charge you the "hefty" sum of $55 per year to use it. Not a bad deal at all.

Carbonite's data center houses arrays of 1-terabyte (TB), enterprise-grade hard disk drives. When you upload your files to Carbonite they will be spread across a total of sixteen of these drives in a RAID-6 configuration.

Get this: These RAID-6 arrays are 36,000,000 times more reliable than the single hard drive in your home computer. For you to lose data, three of the sixteen hard drives must fail, and your PC must crash simultaneously--very, very unlikely.

Carbonite's data center is guarded 24/7/365, and entry is controlled by fingerprint ID locks. As well, they have redundant web servers, Internet connections, and power.

The personnel at Carbonite never work with unencrypted data, and they encrypt using 448-bit blowfish encryption to 'scramble' all of your data.

For extra protection you can choose a provider that offers a private encryption key. Remember that if you lose the key you will not be able to access your data.

3. Scalability - always have the space you need.

You can only hold so much data on CD's, DVD's, external hard drives, tapes, etc. If you are like most users, you have noticed that you are using much more hard drive space than you used to.

Files are getting bigger, not smaller. As users we want high quality photos, music and videos. That amazing quality comes with a price, literally, and in terms of space.

Why back up to several drives, or hundreds of DVD's (we've seen it quite a few times), when for a reasonable fee you can have unlimited, secure storage space?

Remember, with the flat fee pricing for unlimited space you will pay the same price no matter how much you store.

To read all of our online computer backup service reviews visit our site at: www.OnlineBackupTopTen.com. We have worked hard to put together detailed reviews of our top ten favorite online backup services. You will find a useful online backup service comparison chart that makes it simple and fast to find the service that is right for you.

If you have any questions about our online backup reviews, or about your backup plan, feel free to contact one of our consultants using the Contact Us page on our site. You can send email anytime, or contact us by phone between 9-5pm (PST).

Enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing your data is stored safely--backup online.