MediaFire Cloud Storage Service Review
MediaFire is one of the most popular Cloud alternatives to Dropbox and Google Drive, and for good reason. At a glance, you can see Mediafire is clearly more than just a cloud storage service. In this highly competitive cloud storage market, it’s very difficult for a service to get an edge. MediaFire offers up to 50GB of free cloud storage, some powerful features that make file storage easy, and a cool app for mobile users. The service is a bit less friendly for Windows and Mac users, who will have to manage files using a browser interface. In our MediaFire review, we will be looking at the features that make MediaFire stand out from the crowd.
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MediaFire – General Info
MediaFire is a broad cloud solution that allows you not only to store and backup files. Providing cloud storage space is no longer enough for a service to thrive. MediaFire opted to create a powerful file-sharing tool. The Pro and Business plans allow you to effectively create your own media streaming channel and share files on your website using a single link.
The MediaFire Mobile app available for iOS and Android is free and enables users to upload files and access them from their mobile devices. Users can easily create, delete or move folders, and view documents in the app. They can also share files through other apps.
What MediaFire lacks is any sort of editing tools. Unlike Google Drive, for example, you cannot edit files on the go. Still, it would be unfair to claim MediaFire desperately needs these tools to make it worthwhile. This is not the main use of MediaFire, nor does it have to be, as long as the upload, storage, and sharing features are top-notch. We’ll talk about each of these features in the following paragraphs of our MediaFire review.
Pricing & Plans
As far as pricing plans are concerned, MediaFire is quite straightforward. They offer a pretty generous allotment of free cloud storage. As you’ll see below in our MediaFire review, the free plan offers 10 GB. This MediaFire pricing plan allows you to upload, download and share files as you would with the priced plans. However, there are file size restrictions.
In addition, downloads are supported by ads. This can get a bit frustrating. However, MediaFire is clearly better suited for small businesses. You can see that in their cloud storage plans. Below is a table detailing the MediaFire plans.
| Plan | Price | Storage Allotment | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | 10 GB | Unlimited sharing; Unlimited ad-supported downloading. |
| Pro | $3.75 per month, billed annually or $5 month-to-month | 1000 GB | No ads; Upload files up to 20GB; Long-term storage; No captcha codes; Direct links to files; You can download entire folders; FileDrop uploader; Supports priority. |
| Business | $40 per month, billed quarterly or $50 month-to-month | Up to 100 TB | No ads; Upload files up to 20GB; Long-term storage; No captcha codes; Direct links to files; You can download entire folders; FileDrop uploader; Supports priority; Supports up to 100 users; Customizable brands; Security log support. |
MediaFire In-Depth Review
File Backup
After setting up your first MediaFire user account, you’re ready to upload your first files and folders to the cloud. Backing up your folders to MediaFire is very easy, and you can do it in many ways. The fastest way to upload something is to hit the “Upload” button.
A drop-down menu will appear that will prompt you to select the source of your uploaded files. The coolest thing about MediaFire is that you can choose to upload files from your computer/device or another place on the internet.
How does this work? Let’s say you’ve seen a cool picture on a website or a video on YouTube. Instead of downloading it to the desktop and then uploading it, you can tell MediaFire the place from where it can fetch this picture or video.
Furthermore, you can always refine your search for uploadable material, by telling the online manager to display individual files or whole folders.
You can also upload files using the drag-and-drop method. So, whatever you need to back up, there’s always a sure and fast way to do it.
File Restoration
If you need to restore your lost files and folders quickly, then you will be happy to hear that restoring files with MediaFire is just as easy as backing them up. Once you find the file version you want to in the MediaFire cloud manager, hit the download button.
MediaFire will automatically create a .rar or a .zip archive containing the file or files you wish to be restored. Sadly, you will have to download the archive, unpack it, and restore all the files to their original folders manually.
On the bright side, the paid versions of MediaFire allow the users to restore all the files and folders to their original places, without issuing download links.
Users should also be aware that MediaFire removes data that is not accessed for a long period of time, with prior notice. To prevent removal, it is sufficient to access the account.
Security
Employing basic SSL security keys, MediaFire could be great for keeping track of your favorite photo and video albums. But it would not be a good idea to use it for more sensitive information since MediaFire’s encryption is not the greatest. One nice security feature that bears mentioning is the One-Time Link. As the name implies, these links can be used just once. It’s a great feature to use when you’re sharing sensitive info. Unfortunately, the One-Time Link feature is available only for paid plans.
Advanced/Other Features
Apart from the One-Time Link, MediaFire has other advanced features that are worth mentioning, such as file versioning. By default, MediaFire will keep ten separate versions of each file or folder. But MediaFire’s file versioning system can be increased to include up to 20 file versions.
As far as file sharing is concerned, MediaFire is one of the best tools on the market. You can use the Web UI to share one or more files with your contacts or with someone who isn’t using the cloud.
The online manager can automatically generate download links, and embeddable links, and can even allow you to share your favorite files on social media. Presently, MediaFire supports Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, Pinterest, and more.
To access even more share functions like embedding size or alternative download links, you can click on the “more sharing options” button.
MediaFire – Pros & Cons
We will summarize the information gathered throughout our MediaFire review into handy pros and cons lists.
Pros:
- Easy to use and to deploy (it takes 10 minutes to create an account and to upload your first files);
- Drag-and-drop features;
- Gorgeous Web and mobile UIs;
- Multiple share methods;
- Affordable prices;
- Can keep up to 20 versions of each file;
Cons:
- No desktop client;
- Slow upload speed;
- Lax security;
- You need to acquire the paid version to restore files to their original directories.
- Pop-up ads on the free version
Mediafire Alternative Options
Though MediaFire is pretty well-rounded cloud storage advice, we should mention a couple of alternatives in our MediaFire review, if only for the sake of comparison.
If you’re looking for a free MediaFire alternative that allows you to share and store files, you can take a look at Box. Though the free cloud storage space is not as generous, at least you won’t have to put up with annoying pop-up ads when trying to download a link.
Recommended read: Box Cloud Storage Review
Likewise, Dropbox is a solid alternative, though, once again, you’ll have less storage space to work with. Naturally, you can upgrade your account both with Box and Dropbox, to get more space.
Recommended read: Dropbox Cloud Storage Service Review
Lastly, we should mention Amazon Cloud Drive. If you already have an Amazon account, Cloud Drive allows you to easily store all the media files you’ve purchased via Amazon. The downside is that you can’t really do anything with this service if you don’t have an Amazon account.
Recommended read: Amazon Cloud Drive Review
Our Verdict
To conclude our MediaFire review, we have to say this service was a rather pleasant surprise. Rarely do you see cloud storage services that genuinely manage to offer something slightly different than the rest? And MediaFire’s file-sharing features are definitely worth looking into.
That being said, if you’re looking for a cloud service for personal use, MediaFire might not be the best choice. The free plan is quite good, but it doesn’t really compete with the well-established heavyweights. On the other hand, MediaFire’s paid plans might be a bit too much, both in terms of price and features. Thank you for reading our MediaFire review, and if you have any questions or comments, do not hesitate to share them with us!
