Work in Progress
Other drawbacks include the lack of any offline functionality and the absence of a delete option. In the plus column, though, you can both share and print your files. Printing can be done through Google's Clould Print or directly to a web-enabled printer.
Find stuff (left) then edit it (right)...
Like all good Android apps there is a handy homescreen widget but you can also add a separate widget for each of your Google accounts. The widget lets you launch the document scanner, create a new file or see all your starred files with just one touch.
While the entry in the Market states that Docs works on Android 2.1, every time I tried to edit a document in Éclair I got a “browser not supported” flag at the top of the page. The warning aside, the only thing that doesn't see seem to work in 2.1 is the document zoom so it's not a hindrance as long as you have good eyesight.
Of course, being a Google app Docs will get updates and improvements thick and fast so by the time you read this it may be able to make the tea and give you a back-rub. ®
...even spreadsheets
We'll be making our selection of the best Android smartphone and tablet downloads every Tuesday. It you think there's an app we should be considering, please let us know.
iDevice fans, iOS App of the Week is published on Thursday.
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COMMENTS
Offline functionality
I know google are big into online cloud services but they have to recognize that people do need to disconnect their devices from time to time, when they're out of coverage, abroad, on a plane or whatever.
Therefore I wish they would think a bit more about that aspect when they produce these apps. An example which irks me is the Google Maps driving directions functionality. I want to be able to program a route before I leave and for the app to cache the route and major side roads in case I get a bit lost but not have to stay online the whole time. Docs should also let someone work away offline and sync up later.
Re: App Of The Week?
All App of the Week winners are Recommended, because we think they are good and/or show potential, and are worth trying.
The score shows how close to being just right the app is, but a low(ish) score doesn't mean it's not worthy of your attention.
@DrXym (Google Maps)
"An example which irks me is the Google Maps driving directions functionality. I want to be able to program a route before I leave and for the app to cache the route and major side roads in case I get a bit lost but not have to stay online the whole time"
To be fair to them it will cache the route for you and, should you need a detour, you could go online for just that bit of information - no need to have your device on permanently just in case you get lost or need to reroute. You'd probably have to stop (or have a helper) to do so safely but, given the price of the application, it's not too onerous a demand for those (hopefully) few occasions you need it surely ?
I agree about the offline document editing though - at least for non-shared documents.
"I wish they would think a bit more"
I think they've thought about it a lot. You're confusing what you want with what they want you to have. It's free so they dictate the feature list.
That Google would produce something that did not create an umbilical between the user and the internet is almost heretical.
Webapp
It's pretty much just a wrapper around their existing Google Docs webapp. Which is nice to see as it fools the uninitiated into using it and realizing that that webapps are just as good as native, once the right API's are available.
