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Apple Should Acquire Dropbox

32 points by mrshoe 16y ago

iamdave 16y ago
No they should not. Acquisition is on pace to be the thing of the year, and while I'm not saying getting bought out by a large company like Apple is a bad thing, I think continuing to strike out on you own while you've got a good thing running does you more favors.
- dgreensp 16y ago
  Apple should buy Dropbox, but Dropbox shouldn't sell. I'm on Dropbox's side. :)
mkramlich 16y ago
I think it would be bad for Dropbox and for users if Apple bought them. Poor fit. One of Dropbox's strengths is that it's good at synching across multiple OS's and devices, from different vendors. Dropbox when independent has incentive to support Windows and Linux well. If Apple bought them they would be incented to cause/allow the Windows and Linux clients to become inferior, and would not necessarily have any incentive to add support for new platforms when they came along. Apple wants to be your single vendor solution, with vertical control. Dropbox is inherently a "horizontal" service.
- barredo 16y ago
  You made a good point. But Dropbox it's a fantastic app in Windows and Linux too, and I guess that after PC vs Mac, Apple is going to come up with a new ad strategy "Mac is better"-ish again. Safari and iTunes for Windows (as well as iPod and iPhone) are Apple's bait to get users ditch their PCs and buy a Mac. (Well, they are substandard apps, but the intention was/is that). So I guess Apple could offer the best online sync experience with Dropbox and use it to say: "See? Now you can switch to Mac and instantly use all your documents you had on Windows! Isn't that great?"
petervandijck 16y ago
Then what, no porn on Dropbox? Agreed that they should not.
EvanK 16y ago
Getting bought out could go either way for Dropbox's users. Getting bought out by Apple, however, would not be a good thing for us. The key feature that most people use Dropbox for is syncing across all their computers, and I simply don't see an Apple-owned brand doing anything remotely like that.
- tvon 16y ago
  MobileMe does exactly that.
  - sliverstorm 16y ago
    Well, if your world-view contains only OSX and Windows.
    - jasonlbaptiste 16y ago
      I love Ubuntu personally and I think it's awesome that Dropbox works for it. Objectively speaking now, it's just irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.
      - Terretta 16y ago
        I love Ubuntu too, and I think it's awesome that iDisk works for it. It's cool seeing that awesomeness was built into iDisk, since Apple is using open standards for their online storage.
    - Terretta 16y ago
      > Well, if your world-view contains only OSX and Windows. OSX and Windows and any OS that does WebDAV. iDisk is WebDAV. It's a ... wait for it ... "open standard". Even on Mac if you don't like the iDisk client, use any other WebDAV client you like. I see all the iDisk hate in these threads and I wonder about people paying lip service to open standards on the one hand, while pushing proprietary solutions and dissing open standards on the other.
JMiao 16y ago
no, they should be asking why mobileme can't learn from dropbox.
- mrinterweb 16y ago
  If they did purchase dropbox they would probably integrate it into mobileme and require a mobileme subscription in order to use it.
pxlpshr 16y ago
The Dropbox team has a lot more creativity left as far as the product is concerned, I'd hate to see them stripped from that to focus solely on Apple's goals. On the same token, I've argued that Apple should buy Dropbox for two reasons: 1) iDisk is embarrassingly bad. 2) The iPhone/iPad works on both Windows and OSX; universal file portability is important. Regardless, I'll continue paying for premium Dropbox service if they remain independent. And I think I speak for a lot of people.
- jsz0 16y ago
  What do you think is wrong with iDisk? I'm just curious because I've had pretty good experiences with it over the last few years. The one issue I run into are the slow sync times. I have to manually press the sync button more often than I'd like to moving between machines. Interestingly I don't see this problem on the iPhone iDisk app which makes me think it's unique to the way OSX handles iDisk shares. (I recently began using iDisk Sync with local caching which has so far provided more consistency)
  - pxlpshr 16y ago
    iDisk is terribly slow. It doesn't hold a candle to Dropbox. We use Dropbox as a file server and repository, I don't believe iDisk is coded with that level of sophistication / performance. It just works, flawlessly.
Dirt_McGirt 16y ago
And make it like an iDevice and only allow sync from one computer...
- OrangeGuutan 16y ago
  it'd probably require a USB cord to sync too ;)
jasonlbaptiste 16y ago
There are certainly reasons why Apple shouldn't buy Dropbox, but I think there are more reasons why it should happen: 1) It DOES work across all OS's. iTunes works really well on Windows and OSX. Apple would actually want something that can easily be used by all customers. Imagine how small the iPod/iTunes/iPhone base would be if it were just an Apple only product. 2) Their mobile API. This would be a great offering to iPhone devs. By using the Mobile API of dropbox, the filesystem needs for iPhone/iPad apps gets solved. 3) The Dropbox team clearly knows how to build a great cloud product. Apple just doesn't have that in their DNA from what MobileMe has shown. 4) I think Apple could offer a price that makes sense to the Dropbox team and investors like Sequoia and YC. 5) I'm assuming Apple would offer the service for free. Maybe not the 50gb service, but certainly > 2gb. Dropbox would now be used by tens of millions of people within the next 12 months. Could you imagine how much better people's lives will be? 6) I don't know how Apple is post acquisition as they don't do many of them. My guess is, that the team could still flourish/enjoy themselves there.
- w1ntermute 16y ago
  iTunes works really well on Windows A large number of people would beg to differ with you.
  - mistermann 16y ago
    I used to complain about iTunes on Windows, but you just need a modern machine. Now that I have an new i7-920 overclocked to 4GHz, with 12 GB of ram, iTunes responds usually under a second, as long as I'm not running anything else of course.
    - thewileyone 16y ago
      Cool spec'd rig ... and you paid how much so that iTunes can run properly?
  - jokermatt999 16y ago
    Indeed. I'm not exaggerating when I say iTunes is literally one of the worst applications I've ever used. Sluggish, constantly (and needlessly) updating, horribly out of place UI, locks up when adding tracks or syncing, eats memory like nobody's business, unnecessary cruft added in, lack of FLAC support (last I checked), no skinning or addon system, etc, etc. I honestly just meant to write one or two things there, but the various annoyances just kept springing to mind. I used it for years due to having an iPod and not putting enough effort in to switch, but once I finally did it was liberating.
dazzawazza 16y ago
Tighter integration with an OS would be a good point. It's possible to open a file in your dropbox folder that's only partially synced and BANG! If it popped up a dialog saying hold on, just syncing, it would be a lot better. That's the biggest thing an OS vendor could easily bring to the table (other then a large pile of cash). Other then that. I can't see any upsides.
- sliverstorm 16y ago
  > If it popped up a dialog saying hold on, just syncing, it would be a lot better. I prefer the idea of access to a folder that's out of sync than the inevitable frozen loading bars, 'loading' for all eternity and denying me access. A pop-up notice from the taskbar, or perhaps a background color change for folders still syncing, is as far as I'd take it.
  - dazzawazza 16y ago
    As I say, I'd only do it when you open a file, not a folder. Of course looking at a folder is fine but opening a file that isn't really all there is not a good user experience!
sliverstorm 16y ago
"bonus points if Apple continues to support the Dropbox client on other operating systems" Bonus points? BONUS POINTS!?! I'm sorry, but the author comes across as a selfish jerk. He sees a product that is shared by everyone, and speculates how it might make HIS life better, with no regard for everyone else. The aura of "just-doesn't-get-it" is made even worse by the fact that one of Dropbox's GOALS (as I understood it) is cross-platform support.
- Terretta 16y ago
  Same for iDisk. That's why Apple implemented it with WebDAV. Anyone can access iDisk from any OS using an open standard client, and iDisk URLs can be replaced with open standard storage URLs, no proprietary platform or API needed.
zyb09 16y ago
Why not built there own wireless syncing system between iPhone/iPad/PC? They are a software company after all, aren't they? Can't be that hard. As I understand it they already have the basics done with MobileMe.
zzleeper 16y ago
Please no... I love Dropbox as much as i hate apple.. it would be a nightmare..
not_an_alien 16y ago
They'd probably just kill it with fire like they did with lala.
thefool 16y ago
I guess one argument that it would also counter this: https://www.foldershare.com/ https://www.foldershare.com/, but I don't know if that has any widespread use. There are probably better fits than with apple.
- Batsu 16y ago
  When I first saw the post I thought of Live Mesh. I find it very strange Microsoft has both of these services available. http://www.mesh.com http://www.mesh.com
thewileyone 16y ago
No! Apple is a hardware company first and foremost. If they acquire Dropbox, they'd just mess it up!

32 points by mrshoe 16y ago

No they should not. Acquisition is on pace to be the thing of the year, and while I'm not saying getting bought out by a large company like Apple is a bad thing, I think continuing to strike out on you own while you've got a good thing running does you more favors.

dgreensp 16y ago
Apple should buy Dropbox, but Dropbox shouldn't sell. I'm on Dropbox's side. :)

mkramlich 16y ago

I think it would be bad for Dropbox and for users if Apple bought them. Poor fit. One of Dropbox's strengths is that it's good at synching across multiple OS's and devices, from different vendors. Dropbox when independent has incentive to support Windows and Linux well. If Apple bought them they would be incented to cause/allow the Windows and Linux clients to become inferior, and would not necessarily have any incentive to add support for new platforms when they came along. Apple wants to be your single vendor solution, with vertical control. Dropbox is inherently a "horizontal" service.

barredo 16y ago
You made a good point. But Dropbox it's a fantastic app in Windows and Linux too, and I guess that after PC vs Mac, Apple is going to come up with a new ad strategy "Mac is better"-ish again. Safari and iTunes for Windows (as well as iPod and iPhone) are Apple's bait to get users ditch their PCs and buy a Mac. (Well, they are substandard apps, but the intention was/is that). So I guess Apple could offer the best online sync experience with Dropbox and use it to say: "See? Now you can switch to Mac and instantly use all your documents you had on Windows! Isn't that great?"

petervandijck 16y ago

Then what, no porn on Dropbox? Agreed that they should not.

EvanK 16y ago

Getting bought out could go either way for Dropbox's users. Getting bought out by Apple, however, would not be a good thing for us. The key feature that most people use Dropbox for is syncing across all their computers, and I simply don't see an Apple-owned brand doing anything remotely like that.

tvon 16y ago
MobileMe does exactly that.
- sliverstorm 16y ago
  Well, if your world-view contains only OSX and Windows.
  - jasonlbaptiste 16y ago
    I love Ubuntu personally and I think it's awesome that Dropbox works for it. Objectively speaking now, it's just irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.
    - Terretta 16y ago
      I love Ubuntu too, and I think it's awesome that iDisk works for it. It's cool seeing that awesomeness was built into iDisk, since Apple is using open standards for their online storage.
  - Terretta 16y ago
    > Well, if your world-view contains only OSX and Windows. OSX and Windows and any OS that does WebDAV. iDisk is WebDAV. It's a ... wait for it ... "open standard". Even on Mac if you don't like the iDisk client, use any other WebDAV client you like. I see all the iDisk hate in these threads and I wonder about people paying lip service to open standards on the one hand, while pushing proprietary solutions and dissing open standards on the other.

JMiao 16y ago

no, they should be asking why mobileme can't learn from dropbox.

mrinterweb 16y ago
If they did purchase dropbox they would probably integrate it into mobileme and require a mobileme subscription in order to use it.

pxlpshr 16y ago

The Dropbox team has a lot more creativity left as far as the product is concerned, I'd hate to see them stripped from that to focus solely on Apple's goals. On the same token, I've argued that Apple should buy Dropbox for two reasons: 1) iDisk is embarrassingly bad. 2) The iPhone/iPad works on both Windows and OSX; universal file portability is important. Regardless, I'll continue paying for premium Dropbox service if they remain independent. And I think I speak for a lot of people.

jsz0 16y ago
What do you think is wrong with iDisk? I'm just curious because I've had pretty good experiences with it over the last few years. The one issue I run into are the slow sync times. I have to manually press the sync button more often than I'd like to moving between machines. Interestingly I don't see this problem on the iPhone iDisk app which makes me think it's unique to the way OSX handles iDisk shares. (I recently began using iDisk Sync with local caching which has so far provided more consistency)
- pxlpshr 16y ago
  iDisk is terribly slow. It doesn't hold a candle to Dropbox. We use Dropbox as a file server and repository, I don't believe iDisk is coded with that level of sophistication / performance. It just works, flawlessly.

Dirt_McGirt 16y ago

And make it like an iDevice and only allow sync from one computer...

OrangeGuutan 16y ago
it'd probably require a USB cord to sync too ;)

jasonlbaptiste 16y ago

There are certainly reasons why Apple shouldn't buy Dropbox, but I think there are more reasons why it should happen: 1) It DOES work across all OS's. iTunes works really well on Windows and OSX. Apple would actually want something that can easily be used by all customers. Imagine how small the iPod/iTunes/iPhone base would be if it were just an Apple only product. 2) Their mobile API. This would be a great offering to iPhone devs. By using the Mobile API of dropbox, the filesystem needs for iPhone/iPad apps gets solved. 3) The Dropbox team clearly knows how to build a great cloud product. Apple just doesn't have that in their DNA from what MobileMe has shown. 4) I think Apple could offer a price that makes sense to the Dropbox team and investors like Sequoia and YC. 5) I'm assuming Apple would offer the service for free. Maybe not the 50gb service, but certainly > 2gb. Dropbox would now be used by tens of millions of people within the next 12 months. Could you imagine how much better people's lives will be? 6) I don't know how Apple is post acquisition as they don't do many of them. My guess is, that the team could still flourish/enjoy themselves there.

w1ntermute 16y ago
iTunes works really well on Windows A large number of people would beg to differ with you.
- mistermann 16y ago
  I used to complain about iTunes on Windows, but you just need a modern machine. Now that I have an new i7-920 overclocked to 4GHz, with 12 GB of ram, iTunes responds usually under a second, as long as I'm not running anything else of course.
  - thewileyone 16y ago
    Cool spec'd rig ... and you paid how much so that iTunes can run properly?
- jokermatt999 16y ago
  Indeed. I'm not exaggerating when I say iTunes is literally one of the worst applications I've ever used. Sluggish, constantly (and needlessly) updating, horribly out of place UI, locks up when adding tracks or syncing, eats memory like nobody's business, unnecessary cruft added in, lack of FLAC support (last I checked), no skinning or addon system, etc, etc. I honestly just meant to write one or two things there, but the various annoyances just kept springing to mind. I used it for years due to having an iPod and not putting enough effort in to switch, but once I finally did it was liberating.

dazzawazza 16y ago

Tighter integration with an OS would be a good point. It's possible to open a file in your dropbox folder that's only partially synced and BANG! If it popped up a dialog saying hold on, just syncing, it would be a lot better. That's the biggest thing an OS vendor could easily bring to the table (other then a large pile of cash). Other then that. I can't see any upsides.

sliverstorm 16y ago
> If it popped up a dialog saying hold on, just syncing, it would be a lot better. I prefer the idea of access to a folder that's out of sync than the inevitable frozen loading bars, 'loading' for all eternity and denying me access. A pop-up notice from the taskbar, or perhaps a background color change for folders still syncing, is as far as I'd take it.
- dazzawazza 16y ago
  As I say, I'd only do it when you open a file, not a folder. Of course looking at a folder is fine but opening a file that isn't really all there is not a good user experience!

sliverstorm 16y ago

"bonus points if Apple continues to support the Dropbox client on other operating systems" Bonus points? BONUS POINTS!?! I'm sorry, but the author comes across as a selfish jerk. He sees a product that is shared by everyone, and speculates how it might make HIS life better, with no regard for everyone else. The aura of "just-doesn't-get-it" is made even worse by the fact that one of Dropbox's GOALS (as I understood it) is cross-platform support.

Terretta 16y ago
Same for iDisk. That's why Apple implemented it with WebDAV. Anyone can access iDisk from any OS using an open standard client, and iDisk URLs can be replaced with open standard storage URLs, no proprietary platform or API needed.

zyb09 16y ago

Why not built there own wireless syncing system between iPhone/iPad/PC? They are a software company after all, aren't they? Can't be that hard. As I understand it they already have the basics done with MobileMe.

zzleeper 16y ago

Please no... I love Dropbox as much as i hate apple.. it would be a nightmare..

not_an_alien 16y ago

They'd probably just kill it with fire like they did with lala.

thefool 16y ago

I guess one argument that it would also counter this: https://www.foldershare.com/ https://www.foldershare.com/, but I don't know if that has any widespread use. There are probably better fits than with apple.

Batsu 16y ago
When I first saw the post I thought of Live Mesh. I find it very strange Microsoft has both of these services available. http://www.mesh.com http://www.mesh.com

thewileyone 16y ago

No! Apple is a hardware company first and foremost. If they acquire Dropbox, they'd just mess it up!