GoAruna Files

Summary

Useful online storage services such as SugarSync and Dropbox have been around for a while (including their respective Android apps), providing us with helpful features like synchronization between several computers. Although GoAruna doesn’t have that capability, it is advertised as having “unlimited online storage for free” if you take the website’s word for it. Since there never seems to be enough storage space available, I decided to take a look at GoAruna and its Android app version.

Like I said, GoAruna is an online storage with unlimited space that can be accessed from your regular browser or one of its PC, Mac, Linux or Android clients. You first need to set-up an account with GoAruna, which you can also use on your phone. Uploaded files can have a maximum size of 100 MB. You can also share links to specific files with your friends or have them upload files to your own “Dropbox”. This is all included in your online storage. These features are all very easy to use with your GoAruna app. As far as the files themselves are concerned, you are not allowed to upload songs, videos etc. that are copyright-protected. Regardless of which files you upload online, you should carefully read through the Terms of Service when setting up your account.

As soon as you’ve started up GoAruna and are logged into your account, you can access all your online files and folders in explorer view. Obviously, the screen will be blank when you first sign in.

By pressing the menu button you’ll see the following options:

Create Folder
Upload File
Refresh
View Local Files
Select Multiple
More

If you select Upload File, you can select a file from your SD card in explorer view and then long tap to do the following:

View
Select
Copy
Move
Delete
Rename
Share by SMS
Show Details

If you click on Local Files, you are directed to an explorer view of all the files you can upload. Via the menu button you have access to your library. Here you can check out all of your pictures, music and videos. Although the library isn’t perfect (not all thumbnails were displayed), you’ll find the option of uploading multiple files by pressing “Select Multiple. Once you’ve selected multiple files, you have the following upload options by pressing the menu button:

Upload
Zip & Upload
Zip & Send

Unfortunately, the options Zip & Upload and Zip & Send are still a bit buggy. On the Nexus One I got an error message and on the Milestone the app told me I didn’t have enough storage space on my SD card when I actually had 2GB of free space! Simple multiple upload, however, worked fine.

In Internet Files you can see your online storage in explorer view at any time. Long pressing a file will give you the following options:

Download
Copy
Rename
Move
Delete
Send It
Share by SMS
Show Details
Show Link (Share)

With Send you can forward a link to a specific file via email by selecting a contact either from your GoAruna address book or from your phone contacts. Please take note that the lists aren’t displayed in alphabetical order by name. It may be simpler and easier to just copy the link into a normal email message with your standard email client.

Selecting More opens up another long list of options, including Settings, Sent Files and your personal inbox. This is your “dropbox” to which friends can upload their files. Here you’ll find your incoming files, but you can also view them by entering in your personal inbox URL (select Show Inbox URL if you can’t remember it).

Bottom Line: The GoAruna Android app is definitely still a bit buggy even if it makes a good first impression. Nevertheless, GoAruna Files is a good online storage service that can be fairly easily used with its respective app.

GoAruna Files ran smoothly during our test except for the error messages displayed on the Nexus One.

GoAruna Files can be downloaded for free from the Android Market.