14 DAY TRIAL // All Dropbox clients have gotten a big update, Dropbox 2.0 on the desktop, which brings a couple of changes and new features. They don't look like major things at first glance, but power users are going to appreciate them.
What's more, they set the stage for a more connected service, strangely, the client now makes Dropbox feel more like a web service.
It's always been that, of course, but things like notifications, recent changes and fast ways of sharing files and folders make the client a much more powerful tool.
It also transforms the little Dropbox icon in the system tray into a command center for Dropbox.
One of the things users who collaborate a lot will appreciate the most is the new share notifications, if someone shares a folder with you, you'll find out about it soon from the new menu.
You'll be able to accept invitations on the spot and share any of your files straight from the Recently Changed list. You'll still be directed to the site for this, it makes sense since a couple of the steps needed are much easier to implement on the site.
The same notifications translate to the mobile apps, you'll also be notified when someone shared something new with you.
The changes are subtle, but they hint at Dropbox's new focus on becoming a collaboration tool, more so than before, and a way for people working on a project to keep in touch and up to date, without having to do much.
The new notifications should come especially handy when Dropbox stars supporting more file types in the preview option. It's also likely that Dropbox is working on editing support for some files, just like Google Drive has.
Despite the strong competition, Dropbox still enjoys a solid lead in the cloud storage and collaboration market. But it's going to be increasingly hard for it to retain its crown.