As cloud storage continues to expand, there has been a subtle, yet noticeable shift back towards physical storage. There are several companies that are making great strides in physical storage, and they are doing so in the context of the cloud. We told you a little bit about the MBLOK – a Bluetooth external storage device – but we just came across the Sherlybox, which takes external storage to a whole new level.

The Sherlybox is a sort-of cloud on your desk; it acts as a sort-of portable server:

Sherlybox creates a private, invite-only network where you can share movies, music, documents – anything you want – without any storage or size limitations. Now you can keep all your files private and shareable at the same time! It’s like a private cloud under your control. Instead of sending your files to public cloud services, you can share any-size files or folders only with people that you invited personally. Fast, secure and without any cloud storage bill.¹

So, essentially, the Sherlybox acts as your own, personal cloud. Rather than syncing folders across all of your devices, the Sherlybox grants users access. You don’t have to upload anything into some ubiquitous cloud, somewhere in California; you upload files to your Sherlybox, on your desk.

It’s like a supercharged Dropbox, OneDrive, Box or Google Driverunning privately from your own drives securely behind your firewall. Any folder you’ve got can be shared with the people you invite; they can contribute their own files to groups as well.²

Out of the box, the Sherlybox comes with 1 TB of storage. However, if that is not enough, the Sherylbox can be extended with up to 127 USB HDD drive (external hard drives). The Kickstarter Campaign has a brief summation of the Sherlybox:

• Your Private Cloud – Sherlybox creates a private, invite-only network where you can share stuff with each other without any storage or size limitations.
• Just Press and Go – Sherlybox is extremely easy to use. Simply press the Sherlybox logo to set it up and you’re done.
• All your data available to share. Always – even if you turn off your computer, data that you want to share will be available for people with access thanks to Sherlybox.
• More Storage Capability – if you need more storage space, Sherlybox can be expanded with up to 127 USB HDD drives if you want.
• Secured Data Sharing – only people you personally invite will see data in your shared folder (a group). In public cloud, well, you never know.
• Back us now and do not pay again for sharing your data – get Sherlybox and forget about charges from cloud service providers. Sherlybox and a Sher.ly app is single cost, not a monthly service.
• Awesome design – Sherlybox’s futuristic approach can be seen at first sight. It is by far the best-looking cloud storage device in the industry.
• RaspberryPI open world – Sherlybox is based on RaspberryPI new module C and you can install any apps you want on top of it on your own.³

If you act quick, you can still pre-order the 1TB Sherlybox for the early bird price of $199 on the Kickstarter Campaign.