Microsoft Office for iPhone? Please, No!
Today a lot of people are talking about the scary possibility of Microsoft Office for iPhone.
During a Web 2.0 Questions and Answers session, president of Microsoft’s Business Division Stephen Elop let a little something slip. Tim O'Reilly, the organizer of the Web 2.0 conference, pointed out during a chat about client software that no one is using Office on their iPhone, to which Elop responded "Not yet, you're not." The Register reports that when he was pressed on the matter, he let out a terse "keep watching."
Creepy déjà vu from when Skype told us to keep watching, we find it hard to believe Microsoft would ever develop Office for iPhone. iPhoners can already view Excel and Word documents on their phones and, while it’s probably a pain in the neck that they can’t edit them, we’re hoping Office never comes to the iPhone.
While usually, I’m the first person to gush with enthusiasm about possibilities for the iPhone, MS Office on the device is something I actively don’t want. Smartphones are a wonderful invention and no doubt about it, email, news, browsing, the weather, twitter and whatever else on your phone is a great experience. However, composing whole documents on your phone is where I think it crosses the line and moves from phone to a ultra mobile device. It’s the same way we feel about phones with high quality cameras built in: If you want a phone, buy a phone, if you want a camera with over 5 megapixels, bite the bullet and buy a camera.
With applications now available that allow you to edit your MS Office documents, what do you guys think of this news? While I dread the prospect of Word on the iPhone, I’m sure a lot of people would be well up for it. Leave your thoughts below!
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I say burn them all.
I don't dread word! word, XP or 2003 is just fine. I do dread the cost of the Iphone package - which is why I dont have one. £35 a month is just not worth it. I make about 20p of calls.
I use Word and Excel every day on my smartphone. Can one call the iphone a business tool if it cannot view or edit office documents? I was shocked to find out the iphone don't have this.
Excel is great to do quick calculations and projections on the fly while in meetings. I can adjust and fix word documents while at the client. So much the better on the big iphone screen.
I find it essential. The fact that almost all other mobile platforms feature it standard should give a clue.