Own a Samsung Galaxy S9 smartphone? Then you probably already have access to Samsung’s free cloud storage solution: Samsung Cloud.
What is Samsung Cloud?
As the owner of a new Samsung device, you usually get 15GB of free cloud storage in Samsung Cloud – although Verizon customers are excluded from that deal.
You can back up your phone or keep any files that you want in this storage locker. Note that data generated by preloaded Samsung apps such as contacts and calendar as well as data associated with the device itself does not count against the 15GB quota.
Samsung splits the data that can be processed into two groups, as follows…
What can be synced: Calendar, Contacts, Samsung Internet, Samsung Keyboard, S Notes, Samsung Notes, Samsung Pass, Gallery and Reminder.
What can be backed up: Calendar events, contacts on sim card and phone, call logs, clock settings, home screen layouts, apps, settings, messages, music, voice recordings and documents.
Unfortunately, neither WhatsApp messages nor photos are included in this process.
How to save data in Samsung Cloud
To get started, go to cloud and accounts in your device settings, select Samsung Cloud and manage your data immediately. You can check your cloud usage, back up your data, restore it, and sync data across multiple devices except external storage (there’s no support for microSD cards). You will obviously need to create an account or sign in to the service.
Remember that the service is not available on older Samsung devices (older than the Galaxy S6), and that the account is not tied to the smartphone or tablet, but to your ID (or email address). You can access Samsung Cloud storage via a browser at support.samsungcloud.com but you won’t be able to add files – that can only be done via your (Android) phone or tablet.
Should I use Samsung Cloud?
If you need extra storage, Samsung charges $ 0.99 (£0.77) per month for 50GB and $ 2.99 (£2.30) per month for 200GB with no discounts given for annual subscriptions. Just remember that the option to upgrade is not available in all territories or on all carriers.
As of May 2018, the storage option was only available in 30 countries, and even then not all mobile networks rolled it out. In comparison, Google charges $ 1.99 (£1.55) per month for the 100GB tier and $ 2.99 (£2.30) for the 200GB tier.
Even this sounds expensive compared to our editor’s choice, the iDrive Personal which provides 2TB of storage for just over $ 4 (£3.10) when buying on an annual basis.
Given that Samsung’s top of the range smartphone, the Galaxy Note 9, has up to 512GB internal storage and can accommodate another 512GB storage via a microSD card, it makes sense to choose a cloud storage locker capable of backing up that amount of data safely.
Other smartphone manufacturers like Huawei/Honor (with Mobile Cloud) or Apple (with iCloud) provide similar cloud-based offerings and all suffer from the same nagging issue – the lack of flexible storage upgrades across a wide range of operators and countries.
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