Sharing small files over the Internet is something very simple regardless of the environment in which we move. Many times we even have a "share sheet" with shortcuts to WhatsApp, Telegram or email, but not everything is so easy when what we want is to send somewhat larger files. Many use WeTransfer, which allows you to send files up to 2GB, others prefer Wormhole, with a 10GB cap, but what it offers Swiss Transfer has no comparison.
Both Wormhole and SwissTransfer are proprietary services, so that should not make us choose one or the other. Both are also free, and both offer encryption protection. The main differences are found in how much we can send and where the files are stored. Those of Swiss Transfer they stay in switzerland, and that guarantees that international laws will not be able to do anything to remove or snoop on what we send.
SwissTransfer shipments expire after 30 days
Continuing with the comparison of these options to send files, there is something about Wormhole that I like the most: it offers the option of accessing the downloads through a QR code. If we are going to send something remotely, it is not very useful, but it is when what we want is to send something from a PC to a mobile, since these devices can read the codes with the camera. SwissTransfer does not have this code, perhaps because its main competitor is WeTransfer.
But unlike the more popular option, SwissTransfer doesn't offer any kind of registration, which is good and bad. The good thing is that using the service is to enter and send, but the bad thing is that we will not be able to manage the shipments in any way. The files will be automatically deleted at the 30 days, although we can also choose that they disappear after 15, 7 or 1 days. We can also control the download limit with a current maximum of 250 and options of 100, 20 and 1. And all this without advertising... almost: it shows us a window on one side so that we can use a service after each shipment.
Infomaniak, the largest hosting company in Switzerland
SwissTransfer is a service that offers Infomaniak, the largest hosting company in Switzerland. As they say, their goal in launching this service is to make themselves known, something they started a couple of years ago. They also claim to be an ethical and sustainable alternative to GAFA, that is, the big technology companies (Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon, to which the M for Microsoft can be added). Infomaniak offsets its CO2 emissions and uses only renewable energy.
Being a private serviceIf we trust it or not, it should be up to each one of us, but we must not forget that what we are using, be it WeTransfer, Google Drive or MEGA, is also. If we trust WeTransfer, wouldn't a European service like this be better, which in addition to security allows us to send larger files?
File submission process
To be able to send something with SwissTransfer, the first thing is to go to your official website. If it detects that we enter with a configuration in Spanish, for example, it will offer us the option to change to our language. What we will see is something like what heads this article, always with switzerland background images. To start a shipment we just have to click on the plus symbol, or drag files into that window.
Once we have chosen something to send (NOTE: there are unsupported files, so they would have to be compressed, and the same for folders), we can add more (1), choose how to contact the other party between an email or a link (2 ) and access the advanced options (3). In the latter we will choose the validity time, the download limit and also if we want to password protect submission. On the other side we will see something like this:
In that window we can choose to download single files or all, in which case it will create a compressed file.
SwissTransfer also offers an extension for Chrome/Chromium (doesn't look good on Vivaldi) designed to speed up submissions. It does not offer all the options, and clicking on its icon will open a window to send. The files can be shared by clicking on the icon on the right, from where we will obtain a link that we will have to send to the recipient.
Mozilla planted the seeds of all this by releasing Firefox Send, although it was later Hill, and the bad news was followed by the births of Wormhole and this SwissTransfer. Now, and for some time now, sending large files over distance has never been so easy and secure.