Monthly Main Meeting Highlights
Welcome to our August 2015 Main Meeting
Tonight we had a double header. First up was Acronis
the Software back up company followed by Mophie
the maker of range of batteries and portable storage for mobile phones and small tablets.
First on the stage was
../../
Lincoln Goldsmith the General Manager Acronis, Australia and New Zealand. The company is headquartered in Singapore with the Australian operation based in North Sydney. Tonight Lincoln had two products to showcase.
The standalone Acronis True Image 2016 and True Image Cloud which were launched only last week.
Acronis True Image is all about protecting your data. True Image is the premier Acronis product with over 4 million users worldwide in 14 languages. With the 2016 edition and True Image Cloud, they have moved to including our mobile devices - the smartphones and tablets - in that backup process.
The Cloud version, as the name says, backs up to the cloud, it’s not actually a cloud it’s a set of servers based in North Sydney. Lincoln described in some detail the protocols and backup redundancies Acronis have built into the system, and your data is not stored on any overseas server. Your data is secured using private encryption. The program provides a unique encryption code for each user, to quote Lincoln “Only you can see your data”.
I think the best feature of the True Image Cloud is the “Unlimited Storage”. You can have multiply backups, both to the cloud and locally, giving you double the protection.
The Acronis system allows you to backup an entire system, the applications, or migrate systems to new hardware. This is unique to Acronis, in allowing the transfer to a new computer of the entire system. Lincoln spoke about how he used the migration system to create a full cloned desktop on his Mac from his Dell notebook. You can use it to backup your mobile devices - Photos, contacts events and calendars - be they Android, Apple, or Windows tablets. Support for Windows Phones is coming. You can use the backup system to protect from infections and Ransom-ware by simply using the backup to roll back to the last uninfected backup.
New to Acronis cloud is archival backup. It allows you to store large or rarely used files on the cloud to free up space on your drive. Great for tablets or iPads with small drive capacities. Some of the old favourites are still there. Like try and decide? If you need to try a piece of software you can test it with try and decide and remove it if it’s no good.
All this is run from a dashboard.
You can find the Dashboard either via the application software
or by accessing the cloud connection.
Details of how the dashboard works
The transfer is ultrafast with special APIs within the program.
The True Image Cloud is a subscription service and you can upgrade from $89.99 for 1 computer and 3 devices to $209.99 for 5 computers and 15 devices. A device is a mobile phone or a tablet.
Acronis True Image 2016 has no cloud component. All the major components are there, full or incremental backup with selected file recovery so you can recover only those files that appear corrupted or have been accidently deleted. That’s a full image backup including the OS the programs and the files. It allows scheduling of backups and versioning, so the system can be rolled back if it gets corrupted or hijacked by a virus. The major difference is this is a perpetual licence but the software does not update while the cloud version will always be up to date.
After the break we heard from
Ross McInnes who had the stage to demonstrate Mophie’s unique range of batteries and cases for mobile devices. Mophie is number one in the field of protective battery cases in the US. We have had presentations of mobile batteries and mobile cases before but Mophie has combined power, protection and storage into their products to make a comprehensive system to meet any mobile need.
Mophie started in 2007
with the first Apple certified battery packs for iPhone, the Juice Pack. Ross gave us some stats on mobile phone development and batteries. It appears battery life is not keeping up with the demand
that new smartphones and tablets place on them. Mophie hopes to make the evening power outage a thing of the past.
Ross showed us the range of power, storage and protection devices the company has on offer.
Starting with the Space range.
Combining both battery and memory, the Spacestation is designed be a power source and an extra level of memory. No .longer need we put up with that 8 GB limit on our phone’s external memory. The Spacestation comes with up to 128 GB of flash memory. Working with the Mophie app you can transfer your photos and data to the Mophie storage and save space on the phone.
are the basic power and protection cases for your devices. You will never have to remove the case. If your device or the pack needs a recharge, simply plug the case in and the pack will charge the phone then charge the pack. On the go you can simply switch between the phone or the pack as needed. It’s not just about the battery,
the Juice pack case has four levels of protection for your phone; everyday level to protect from bumps and scratches, high impact with pads for hard falls, the isolation impact system with internal bumpers to cushion the edges and rugged water proofing, giving complete protection from water and dirt. The H2OPro has military grade water proofing protection.
Ross also showed us the range of cables and adapters available, including a yet-to-be-released switch tip cable for lighting and micro USB connectors.
Leading the pack again, Mophie have introduced the Apple Watch dock.
The Watch sits on a
magnetic clip on the stand.
Find out more at Mophie.com
The Raffle
Tonight everyone was a winner. Acronis generously donated a copy of Acronis True Image 2015 to all attending. Then they raffled off two copies of True Image 2016.
Our Acronis winners
Ken and Frank
Our Juice Pack winners
Tim and Malcolm
