Dropbox raised its prices recently and in order to keep their current customers from unsubscribing, they have been working on a redesigned version of the cloud service that should make them happy. Now the new desktop version can be accessed through an early access program but before you decide to check it out, you’d probably want to know what’s in it for you. Based on their blog post, it’s a lot and they have definitely gone beyond just a place to store your files and media.
You’ll now be able to create, access, and share content like Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides and Microsoft Office files, all from within the app itself. You will have the option of opening the latter in Office Online or on the Google web editor. You can now also save and store web links in Dropbox and search for it alongside your other files.
Think of it as a bookmarking app for websites, articles, etc, only it’s much easier to search for it now. You’ll be able to search for all of the content you save on it, like your traditional files, cloud content, and now, your web links or shortcuts as well. You’ll still be able to organize everything on your Windows File Explorer or your macOS Finder.
The redesigned app also adds more collaboration tools. Previously it already had integrations with Salesforce, Adobe, and Autodesk, and now you can also use Slack channels, Zoom video conferencing, and project management with Atlassian. If you share Dropbox with a team, you can now also pin frequently used files, @mention people, assign files to respective team members, see file activity, and share feedback through comments in your content across all platforms.
So after all that, if you feel like taking the new Dropbox out for a spin, you can opt in through their early access program. But if you just want to wait for it to roll out in the regular version, you’ll have to wait a few more weeks.
