Carbonite Online Backup for Windows

User Reviews

• Slow, inflexible, impolite, frustrating

  mcclain76January 11, 2012

  Pros

  Easy interface

  Cons

  It will take weeks to complete you initial backup, and perhaps months should you switch computers; awful customer service without kindness, competence, or flexibility.

  Summary

  I have used Carbonite for 18 months. My initial backup of 125 gigs of data took six weeks, a long time to go without a total backup once you have decided you need one. It all worked fine until I bought a new computer. Carbonite seems to throttle data transfer the more data you have. I set up a new pc recently and partially changed my folder hierarchy (e.g. started storing documents in a folder not labeled 'my documents'). I was not willing to relinquish my already-backed up data until I was sure that my transition to a new computer had gone smoothly. I would have been happy simply to rearrange my backup to reflect my new folder hierarchy, and not have to re-start the backup process with essentially the same data. There is no such capacity through Carbonite. Thus, I initiated a backup of my new file structure alongside my prior one, and thanks to throttling, my new PC has not gone to sleep since I set it up twelve weeks ago because the data is still transferring and Carbonite is always running (25 gigs still left to go!). I called Carbonite to ask how to work out a solution as I was not adding 125 gigs to my back up, I really was just moving my data under a slightly different folder hierarchy. (Customer service is only open during regular business hours.) Their customer service person told me that she could not access my account because their system was down. I told her that is was disconcerting that a data backup company could not access its own data. She replied that they were doing system maintenance. When I reminded her it was 11 AM on a Wednesday and that system maintenance is usually done at night when, you know, no customers are able to call - she hung up on me (I had been polite but firm). Bottom line: I have spent four of the last 18 month of my Carbonite membership with it running 24 hours a day ssssslllooowwwwwly. Bottom line: look elsewhere for a company that uses a scalpel rather than a hammer to control the backup process, and has customer service that can access your account during business hour and won't hang up on you.

  ---

• Trashed my Mac's file system!

  StellaWalletsFebruary 16, 2011

  Pros

  None that I could see since I could not run Carbonite.

  Cons

  I loaded the trial version of Carbonite on my iMac, running Snow Leopard. Mac immediately reported "Catalog file: No PEOF (Physical end of file)." Mac's disk utility said file system could not be recovered. I called Carbonite and they were no help.

  Summary

  I hope Carbonite has addressed this issue by now, but if not and if you have a Mac, I'd stay away!

  ---

• Don't count on it.

  davehacheyFebruary 5, 2011

  Pros

  The Remote Access can be useful.

  Cons

  We use this for our small business and when we had a disaster we were stunned to find out that there's a whole host of file types that Carbonite doesn't back up. Luckily we had a secondary backup or we would have been in a nightmare scenario.

  Summary

  If you're looking for a backup to count on this isn't it. Customer support is very poor. In the several times I used it I found that wait times are incredibly long (30 min plus) and it seems the only thing they will tell you to do is to reinstall Carbonite.

  ---

• Straightforward, but will miss things you need

  ibyte78February 5, 2011

  Pros

  Easy install, setup and good performance

  Cons

  Misses files downloaded from Outlook; Doesn't pick up shortcuts; Fails behind some firewalls.

  Summary

  Carbonite doesn't work. It fails to backup normal Office files downloaded from Outlook 2007 claiming they are "temporary files". They are not. They refuse to respond to my many requests for resolution to this issue. "Never Worry About Your Backup Again" is an outright lie. You will lose files. It's too bad about their attitude, too. If they were willing to own it, I'd let them work it out, but they just don't seem to care.

  ---

• Not everything was backed up.

  LJinCAJanuary 31, 2011

  Pros

  Cheap. Easy to reach customer service by phone.

  Cons

  I thought all of my files were safe when my hard drive crashed, but I was very wrong. None of my music files were backed up. Not one. The most frustrating part was talking to customer service--they didn't seem to care.

  Summary

  I'm going to cancel my subscription and switch to something else.

  ---

• Good option and decent price for "cloud" backups

  Warp09January 30, 2011

  Pros

  Integration of software into the Explorer shell so you can see by little yellow or green dots on file icons what is backed up and what is not (or is pending).

  Cons

  It is true that non-default file locations/folders and *.exe, *.dll files are not backed up by default -- so if you are a developer, just be sure to set your development folder(s) for backup.

  Summary

  I like it, and have 4 days left in my 15-day trial, but I am going to choose SugarSync, which I believe is more lightweight (i.e. doesn't drag your system resources down) and has a better interface (but also integrates into the shell like Carbonite does). IMO it is simply superior to Carbonite and is easier to use for the novice and non-techy.

  ---

• Incomplete backups, file loss in recovery, poor support

  computerupJanuary 29, 2011

  Pros

  Easy to setup, and cost is great. If you just have a few files to retrieve after an accidental deletion then you may be fine.

  Cons

  If you lose a hard drive, you'll be shocked to find out that Carbonite did NOT backup all your files. And when trying to retrieve, many files will be listed but unavailable to be retrieved. I lost SEVERAL HUNDRED files to Carbonite. Support? A joke.

  Summary

  I had thought that Carbonite was great at first, with a super price and test deletions and restorals being easy. But when my hard drive crashed AND my backup drive was corrupted, I found that Carbonite had NOT done its job. Tons of files had been unmarked for backup (unbeknown to me), including important media files and data files. So when I went up into the Carbonite drive for retrieval, none of these files were available. Moreover, hundreds of files that were listed did NOT come back down during the restoral process. I tried to work with Technical Support, but 1) they weren't available by phone, and 2) they were obviously in another country where English was NOT spoken. I got nothing but replies in canned pre-written sentences or in cryptic English, and they could not understand what I was asking. In the end, we were around in circles, and I couldn't download so many of these important files. And over the next few days, the files started to disappear from the Carbonite drive. In the end, I lost huge numbers of files. So $50 a year? It's not worth it if the service simply doesn't work reliable. I'd rather pay $50 a MONTH to know that I am TRULY being protected, and in a pinch will not lose the files. I want human beings to talk to in a disaster recovery situation, not offshore people pressing hotkeys that bring up canned phrases. For these reasons, I cannot recommend Carbonite any more, and I've advised my clients to remove it from their machines.

  ---

• Bandwidth upload restrictions after 35 GB: MAJOR NEG.

  dumpdiveJanuary 19, 2011

  Pros

  Will do what it says, if you read all the fine print about its restrictions

  Cons

  Takes way too long to backup data if you have more than 35GB.

  Summary

  I'm a Mac user. I'd already purchased Carbonite when I found CrashPlan. I will not renew Carbonite when my current subscription expires. Reason: About two weeks ago I imported nearly 80 GB of pictures onto my hard drive. CrashPlan had the new stuff backed up within three days. Carbonite, because of their restriction on bandwidth usage once you've reached a certain number of GB to back up, has yet to complete the backup. CrashPlan is also slightly cheaper. The only thing I'll lose is the ability to access my backup from my cell phone.

  ---

• Info center to change settings doesn't open. Slow. .

  martyjosJanuary 19, 2011

  Pros

  Not much to like

  Cons

  Backup, when it runs, is slow. The Information center, that allows the suers to see what is backed up and th change settings fails to open most times. Many files are not automatically backed up.

  Summary

  I would not buy it again.

  ---

• have had to use it twicce with no problems

  whodat123January 17, 2011

  Pros

  easy to use, no problems

  Cons

  no problems for me

  Summary

  Easy to use, works behind trhe scene. Inobtrusive. Easy to recover files.

  ---

• Show reviewsHide reviews
• Rate it