So What Do You Think About The Native Google Docs App Now That You’ve Downloaded It?

May 1, 2011

So What Do You Think About The Native Google Docs App Now That You've Downloaded It? 4

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As most of you know, it's no big surprise to learn that Google fan boys (and girls) everywhere have been waiting quite some time for a native Google Docs app. It's actually quite humorous now looking back on launch day as I was checking out my Twitter feed, I saw dozens of tweets like “Sweet, Google Docs has an Android app!” and “Yes! Finally, a Google Docs app!”. Heck, I have to admit that I could barely contain myself when I heard the news, because I'm a huge advocate for the service. As of today, I currently have 200+ documents uploaded to Google's servers and constantly require frequent and easy access to them. I'm what you consider a Doc junkie. In my line of work (Wireless Telecom) there is a doc for everything. MOP's, SOP's and dozens of PDF's are highly relied upon to keep track of day to day troubleshooting and operations. So, how does the new native Google Docs app measure up now that you've downloaded it and tried it out? Well, just check Twitter out again and you'll see disappointed tweet after disappointed tweet.

The app left quite a bit to be desired, unfortunately. Don't get me wrong, I think the app has great potential, but simply put, it's just not there yet. In my opinion, the problem is that the app was most likely initially judged by and compared to already existing document applications like Docs To Go by DataViz and QuickOffice Pro, just to name a few. When comparing Google Docs to these document app giants, clearly it falls extremely short in a few departments. The UI for starters is just not intuitive enough. I realize Google likes to keep things simple, but this is too simple in my opinion. Hands down, if you're looking for a clean, streamlined and smooth UI, QuickOffice is the app you're looking for. As of now, I just can't see myself giving up QO for Google Docs. One of the biggest complaints and short comings, if you will, was the fact that when you open a document for editing in Google Docs, you're taken to what seems to be a mirrored web version of the editing page, which frankly is as limited as it comes. The settings are very lacking as well, only offering the ability to alter the cache size or clear it all together.

I do however, like the simple main page which breaks down your documents by category for quick access. If you're just looking for an image, say of the OSI Model, then you can quickly tap the image icon and bypass all other formats of docs. At start up you can see All Items, Collections, Starred, Documents and Images, making it extremely easy to access just what you need, eliminating the daunting task of sifting through all of your docs to find the one you need. Scrolling could be a little smoother as well and transitioning from screen to screen could definitely use some improvement too. Furthermore, you can't format anything in a Word doc. So, if you were thinking about highlighting something or bulleting a list, it's out of the question in this version.

Overall, I think if you're a huge document junkie and you are constantly accessing docs via your mobile device or tablet, you would be better off with QuickOffice or Docs to Go, as Google Docs still needs a bit of work. However, this is also a segway into the fact that, for many, price could be the determining factor, as it most often is. Price in conjunction with a ridiculous 15 min return policy would drive anyone to a free app no matter how lacking it is. As of now, QuickOffice is on sale and will run you $7.99 and is jam packed with features along with a great UI, making this app the best buy for the price. Docs to Go offers a free app for simply viewing only and if you want to edit documents, the key version is going to run you a whopping $14.99, but nevertheless gets the job done. Google Docs is free and could be considered the better choice here if money poses as the driving force. So, what's your opinion? Is the Google Docs app good enough for you or do you need something just a little more?

Native Google Docs for Android Link and QR Code

Screen shots compare Docs To Go, QuickOffice and Google Docs

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Joe Sirianni Author

Joe was born in New Jersey and spent most of his childhood moving around from state to state. He eventually made his way to Pennsylvania where he met his Portuguese beauty and made her his wife. He now has three great kids and full access to all of the Portuguese food he can eat. Joe's love for mobile technology began when he bought his first Palm Pilot, a Palm M130 and left it on top of his car, driving off, causing it to smash into a thousand pieces. Forced to buy a new device, he quickly discovered that specs were changing so rapidly he was buying a new device every six months just to keep up. Since then, he has constantly felt the need to have the latest and greatest. When the "smartphone" revolution began and integrating cell phones and PDA's was the norm, he quickly jumped to Windows Mobile for several years until the first Android device was launched, the T-Mobile G1. Joe began appreciating all of the free utilities Google provided and sold his soul (his precious data) to Google long before they got into the mobile OS business. So, there was no hesitation at all for him to jump on board and ride the Android train as an early adopter. And boy has it been a blast. Joe now works in the Engineering & Operations dept for a major mobile carrier where he remotely troubleshoots cell sites and loves being an Editor for TalkAndroid.

5 comments

AdamVM says:

May 1, 2011 at 4:58 PM

I was also stoked when the Google Docs App came out. I didn’t last long. I promptly loaded up a document, and tried to edit it. Nothing. I got the same nothing I got trying to edit it through the browser. So I’ll hang on and see if there are any updates. Might get better. I tried the evaluation version of Documents to go, but whether it’s because it’s the evaluation copy or it simply doesn’t work I couldn’t edit docs in that one either. I’m not about to spend $15 on an app that I do not know if it’s going to work or not. Come to think of it I’m not going to buy the other one for 7.99 either unless I know it’s going to work. If I just want to read them I can do that in the browser. 15 minutes isn’t long enough to decide if an app works as described and does it well.

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D2 User says:

May 1, 2011 at 3:33 PM

My experience: installed it on my D2 and trying to use the doc from camera feature not only killed the app but killed all use of my camera until a reboot.

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Joe Sirianni says:

May 1, 2011 at 8:45 PM

Thanks for commenting guys, I highly highly highly recommend QuickOffice, it works great on phones and especially tablets. And if you’re a Xoom or G-Slate owner there is QuickOffice Pro –

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Rania R Madanat says:

May 1, 2011 at 6:24 AM

Thx for the review. I was waiting to read what people thought about it.

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All Kind Calls says:

May 1, 2011 at 5:03 AM

Shitty app

Reply