Microsoft’s revamped SkyDrive cloud service to take on Google Drive?

With the yet-to-launch Google Drive cloud service that is rumored to take on Dropbox, Microsoft made things a little more official today for its upcoming updated SkyDrive cloud service for Windows 8 and possibly OS X. The new service will include improved file management and synchronization, secure two-factor authentication for remote access to files not yet uploaded to Skydrive, and support for file uploads of 2GB. What makes things interesting are rumors of paid storage options and a Mac client originating from Gemind.com.br who posted (via ArsTechnica) screenshots from Windows Live of SkyDrive advertising clients for “PC or Mac”…

As for storage, the screenshots show options to add an extra 20 GB, 50 GB, or 100 GB to the default 25 GB for $10, $25, or $50 yearly. That’s compared to the 10 GB, 20 GB, or 50 GB of additional iCloud storage for $20, $40, or $100/year. Of course, purchased music, apps, books, and TV shows from iTunes, as well as images in Photo Stream, do not count towards iCloud’s free 5GB. We do not have any more details on Google Drive other than a leaked UI  that resembles the rest of Google’s services and code references in Docs. A Mac client for the new SkyDrive that is rolling out in the next few months will not be a huge stretch, because Microsoft already released an iPhone client for the service in December. The Wall Street Journal said earlier this month Google Drive would launch within “weeks or months” and be “free for most.”