View and edit Word documents on your iPhone with Documents To Go
Documents To Go has finally arrived on the iPhone.
It's been a long time coming, but DataViz's Documents To Go has finally arrived in the App Store.
The software allows you to view, edit, and create Microsoft Word documents, while a companion desktop app (for Windows and Mac) enables two-way synchronization.
Needless to say, this should have business users dancing in the aisles (or at least doing a little Where the Hell is Matt-style jig).
Drawing on years of experience with Palm and Windows Mobile versions of Documents To Go, DataViz crammed in a laundry list of features. For starters, the company's InTact technology guarantees that all document formatting gets preserved between iPhone and PC.
The app also offers predictive text, landscape viewing/editing, character formatting (bold, italics, underline, etc.), bulleting and numbering, tables, embedded graphics, and plenty more. Most importantly, it allows you to cut, copy, and paste text. (Remind me why it took Apple three versions of the OS to add this?)
For the moment, Documents To Go supports only Word files, at least in terms of creating and editing. As with countless other apps, you can view Excel, PowerPoint, PDF, and iWork documents.
Down the road, DataViz will add support for creating and editing Excel spreadsheets, at which point anyone who purchased this version will get a free upgrade.
And right now, Documents To Go is priced at just $4.99-- a"grand opening" special that ends June 30. I'm not sure what the price will be after that, but it's a good bet it'll be closer to competitor Quickword ($12.99). The latter can't yet edit Word 2007 files, nor does it actually synchronize documents.
Also on special: Documents To Go with Exchange Attachments, which includes a built-in e-mail client for downloading, viewing, and sending Word files on the run. (In other words, it syncs with your company's Exchange server.) That version will cost you $9.99 until June 30.
Good stuff. Now all we need is a decent portable Bluetooth keyboard for word processing on the run. Come on, accessory makers! Get with the program.
Rick Broida, a technology writer for nearly 20 years, is the author of more than a dozen books. In addition to writing CNET's The Cheapskate blog, he oversees BNET's Business Hacks. Rick is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CBS Interactive. Disclosure. Deals found on The Cheapskate are subject to availability, expiration, and other terms determined by sellers. Follow Rick on Twitter at cheapskateblog.
