PORTLAND, OR, United States – Turn to any tech news publication and all you hear about is the cloud. Cloud computing, cloud storage, cloud this and that – it goes on an on. Storing your data on a magical hard drive in the sky is an amazing idea. Think about it, you can store your music, videos and photos in a place where you can access the media wherever you need it. No more having to remember which microSD card you had in that one phone 3 months ago – the files are magically accessible because they’re in the cloud.

So, with all this magic, what are the puzzle pieces that make this all possible? Dropbox is likely the most well known cloud based storage service. With compatibility with Mac, Windows PC and Linux, the service is ubiquitous in the mobile world. There is no official Symbian DropBox client. However, a fantastic app is available called cuteBox.

cuteBox is a Qt app that is available for the most recent Nokia devices. Upon first loading the application, you’re shown the top level of your Dropbox directory. Pressing a directory will take you into that respective folder and pull down that directories content listings. Other buttons in the main menue include a plus that adds a new file, a download button that enables you to download multiple files at once. Pressing the button that looks like two papers on top of one another bring up other operations including move/copy/delete.

Add, Delete, Move

Adding a new file from your phone up to Dropbox is simple. By clicking the + button, you are prompted to either load a new folder, audio clip, picture, video or local file. One feature I really love about cuteBox is that you can upload files (and download for that matter) in the background, meaning you can either move somewhere else in cuteBox or load up another app while the file transfer takes place.

Sharing files is easy within cuteBox also. Let’s focus on the Public Folder, which is intended for Dropbox users to share files/media with other folks. Each folder or file in the Public folder has a public URL for easy access to those with or without a Dropbox account. Say you want to share a photo or file from your Nokia N8 to someone, all from your mobile. Using cuteBox, you can share the file’s URL via SMS, email or by simply attaching it to the N8’s clipboard for use in any other application. Now, you can share the file without email and the size limitations thrust upon us.

A Speedy App

I’ve been using cuteBox as my Dropbox client for 3 days now and I’m so impressed with its speed and versatility. This is the one of the most lightweight applications I’ve ever used on a Nokia device. The app is written in Qt so transitions between windows is smooth and silky. I can easily go between apps when cuteBox is open and actively uploading or downloading. I find that network throughput is speedy on both 3G and Wi-Fi connections.

If you’re a Dropbox user on a recent Nokia device, you simply need cuteBox. The app used to have a cost associated with it but cuteBox was just made free in the Ovi Store. So there’s no reason to not give cuteBox a try today.

Photo credit: GabrielaP93