Dropbox Comes to Windows Phones and Tablets

Fulfilling what I assume was a contractual obligation, Dropbox today released mobile apps for both Windows Phone and Windows, bringing its cloud storage service to millions of new devices. The apps appear to provide the same basic features as on other mobile platforms, but also support unique Windows-centric features too.

Dropbox for Windows Phone (8.0 or higher) or Windows 8.1 tablets lets you:

• Automatically backup your photos to Dropbox.
• Mark files as favorites so you can access them more quickly.
• Access multiple Dropbox accounts, including both work and personal accounts.
• Pin any folder in Dropbox your Start screen.

Dropbox for Windows Phones and tablets is the result of a sudden and unexpected partnership between the cloud service provider and Microsoft late last year. Announced just after Microsoft revealed it would make unlimited OneDrive storage available to all Office 365 subscribers, this partnership has quickly resulted in handy integration features for users of both companies’ products. Key among them: You can now access Dropbox through Microsoft’s mobile versions of Office, and support for desktop Office is coming this year.

I compared the Dropbox apps for Windows/Windows Phone with the versions for iPad/iPhone to see whether there were any differences. Aside from some platform-specific UI differences, both apps appear to look and work quite similarly. They both offer the same basic three views—Files, Photos and Favorites—and both can be used to automatically back up your device photos to the cloud. And they both offer an optional passcode lock for the app.

Folks, this is what success smells like. It’s only sad that it took so long.

You can download Dropbox for Windows Phone 8.0 and 8.1 from the Windows Phone Store.

You can download Dropbox for Windows 8.1 (including Windows RT 8.1) from the Windows Store.