Documents to Go Premium Review

I've owned an iPad since day one, and in all of that time I've only had one major disappointment. The first time I kicked my iPad into life, I headed straight to my Google Docs account to access and edit my online docs. What did I get? Google's practically useless mobile Docs site. Yes, I could view my files, but I couldn't edit them, and switching over to the desktop version of Docs only presented a hobbled, useless version of the site.

I'm a high school English teacher by day, so I keep a vast array of assignments, handouts and presentations on Google Docs so I can access them wherever I happen to be. But the iPad represented a serious stumbling block in my plan, and I resolved to find an app to help me bridge the gap between my iPad and my Google Docs. Unfortunately, at launch, there really weren't any viable options. The only one I could find was unstable at best, and (until a recent update) ran the risk of corrupting Google files, and that was a risk I just couldn't afford to take. So I waited..and waited..and waited..

Fortunately, the folks at Documents to Go have updated their apps and made them universal for the iPhone and the iPad, and while Google Docs integration is only available in the premium version, I can easily say that the update is worth the wait and the price of the app. My quibbles are relatively few, as integration and syncing with my beloved Google Docs has been seamless thus far.

In spite of my enthusiasm for editable Google Docs on the iPad, I'd be doing the app a disservice if i did not mention the other online services the app is capable of syncing with. Everything from files on Box.net to Dropbox to even SugarSync is available and, best of all, easy to access. Editing tools are not at the level of a desktop word processor - yet - but I've found that most of the tools I need are present and easily accessed. Apple's own Pages for iPad could learn a few tricks from this new version of Documents to Go Premium. One of the most confounding features missing from Pages, a simple word count, is right there in Docs to Go. No, this app isn't as pretty as Apple's iPad word processor, but I'm willing to sacrifice good looks for usability any day.

My main quibble with the app is that there seems to be some lag when using the iPad's virtual keyboard. It's not much, and some users might not notice it, but if you do a fair amount of typing you'll feel a certain sluggishness in getting your words on the page. I hope the developers will address this quickly, but it is in no way a deal breaker at this point.

While the price point of Documents to Go Premium is a little high by App Store standards, the ability to access and edit so many online documents so easily makes this an easy recommendation. If you store docs in the cloud, this is one immensely valuable tool.