Put.io

I have been using for the past 6 months Put.io: A torrent client in the cloud with streaming capabilities. This does not sound very impressive, but for those of you, who struggle with technology or who are in locations where it is difficult to download (blocked ports, throttled ports, limited bandwidth, limited data), Put.io is the right product.

For a very moderate fee (less than 5USD per month) I have 10GB storage in my account. This allows me to simply copy paste the link to a torrent file and almost real time (the download speed is super fast) the completed file appears in my account.

Once I have download it, it is already there and I can watch it whenever I want and as often as I want. Not only that but I have a lot of possibilities, where I want to watch it. I can play it on the browser or on a mobile device or download it directly to my computer. Put.io also offers an API so other services such as boxee also support it. No matter what I choose, it loads really fast.

Put.io has completely changed the way I consume torrent files. In the past, if I wanted to watch something with my roommates on a Sunday night, I had a collection of files in a physical storage unit and we decided together, which one to watch (No chance for spontaneous decisions, as downloading something takes several hours). Now we just decide on the spot and within minutes the file is already downloaded and we are comfortably streaming it.

I think Put.io has a lot of potential and there is definitely a need for this. However, the product is far from being perfect. It has to work in becoming more intuitive, because as it is, it remains a toy for the geeks. Also the website seems to pitch to those who are already aware of the advantages offered by an online torrent client. Personally, I had to use it first to fully grasp the possibilities of the product. There is a lot of room for improvements.

Nevertheless, I can recommend Put.io, but do not expect your mom or dad to understand it right away or to even use it. But if you consume torrents and you live in a place where it is difficult to do it. Then, you should definitely try it…