The new feature tries its hand at one of iCloud's most appealing new features: Photo Stream.
With Photo Stream, Apple makes it easy to access photos from your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch within iPhoto, Aperture or Windows Explorer automatically. This aids in backing photos up to your computer, as well as storing photos to the cloud.
The new Dropbox photo upload feature -- which is currently available in the latest Experimental Forum Build of the desktop app -- works in a similar manner.
Once enabled, plugging in a camera or memory card will give you the option of automatically importing the photographs and movies and then uploading that content directly to Dropbox.
I have my iPhone 4S setup not to connect to iPhoto/Aperture or any other camera utility, so I tested the new feature using an SD card from a Polaroid Z340 that we had around the office.
Upon inserting the card, I was greeted with this message:
As you can see, you can choose to automatically import photos from a particular device or opt to "never" import from that device.
Once you select "Start Import," the process starts. All of the photos and videos on the SD card are imported to a newly created "Camera Uploads" folder within Dropbox. That folder is then synced with Dropbox's servers.
The entire process is quick and seamless.
In the Dropbox forums, some users have complained about the feature -- worrying that the feature will make it too easy for free users to burst past their account sizes. Others dislike the lack of granularity in choosing what files to upload and to what folder.
While we would certainly appreciate an option to select an upload location, rather than defaulting to "Camera Uploads," we think this is a fantastic new feature.
For people like my mom -- who avoids uploading her photos from her camera on a regular basis -- this sort of tool would ensure that her photos stay backed up in at least one more location (in addition to using iCloud).
As someone who frequently uploads shots from my camera to Dropbox, especially when at live events, this feature will save one more step. My hope of hopes? That Dropbox and EyeFi can find a way to work together so that photos I take with my EyeFi card can upload directly to a Dropbox folder.
The feature is still in beta, so be prepared for some potential bugginess. Mac users who want to stay on the cutting-edge with Dropbox updates should check out the excellent MacDropUpdate utility.