Microsoft have now finally pushed out the new SkyDrive – now also using the Metro Windows 8-like design similar to what you can find in the Windows 8 app and the new Outlook.com design. In addition, it has also updated its applications for the cloud storage service plus launched an Android app for SkyDrive.
By default, it will show the tile-based layout, but you can revert back to the standard list view. The new design also features Instant Search, a contextual toolbar (meaning operations for a particular thing will show up on the menu bar – like ‘Folder actions’) and new sorting options. Of course, you will also have the new Office Web Apps update.
The updated apps for Windows and Mac OS X will now let users sync their photos to SkyDrive from the app, and will look for changes in files located in your local SkyDrive folder to see if they need to upload a new copy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaWw0zLT67E
Microsoft has also announce that it will launch in a couple of weeks a new Android app for SkyDrive – the last major platform to do so since iOS and Windows Phone already have a native SkyDrive app. It will be “similar to our mobile apps” in that you will be able to browse what is in your SkyDrive, upload files to it and share files from the app.
Developers will be also pleased with some new changes in the API – the company has relaxed restrictions on photo resolution and file restrictions, and you can now add (with simple Javascript) a file picker to open and save files to SkyDrive.
The rollout of the apps will be out sometime this week; while it appears the website is being slowly rolled out. The login page has been updated, but at the time of writing, I have not received the updated version of SkyDrive.