Microsoft working on iPad apps?
According to noted Windows pundit, Paul Thurrott, Microsoft is indeed prepping some iPad apps:
Shhh.... It's true: Microsoft is working on iPad apps.
Whether that's Sea Dragon or Bing or or Office is unknown, of course.
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I want MS Office on my iPhone 4!!!!
Microsoft Bob. There, I said it.
Office. YES!
Office would hot
Office would make the iPad much more work-friendly.
"wonderful like Office" I hope that was sarcasm. I don't want anything from Microsoft on any of my iDevices, thank you. If MS wants us to use their nasty Office files, they can build a web app.
They should update bing first to be retina display pretty.
Microsoft Word for the iPad would make the iPad a tremendously more popular (and useful) tool for businesses.
Office on the iPad would be incredible. I would be able to sell them like mad.
Hell, I already use mine as a full laptop replacement. I only need a laptop for USB-to-serial stuff.
If you need to work with Office files now, as many of us do, the best way is via a remote session to a Windows machine. All the App Store office apps (Docs to Go, QuickOffice, etc) suck, and they always will. MS formats are too proprietary for independent devs to accurately reverse engineer. I know people want to work on their Office files offline, but it'll never work (well). Office is just too much of a pig to translate onto a small touch screen device. Also, Microsoft is completely incompetent now.
Right now the reason iPad is NOT a hit with enterprise users yet is that it can't replace some basic things even a netbook can do: video calls, saving documents (anywhere), editing documents.
Apple is really leaving a lot of money on the table there. Each IT department that is sold on the iPad for work instantly means dozens or more sales plus guaranteed replacements every year or two. And iPad already has the processing capability to do all this. All it needs is a front-facing camera (Apple really dropped the ball on that), the ability to save Word documents to view later (right now you have to PDF and save to iBooks, can't edit a thing), and Microsoft to make some Office apps.
BTW Docstogo is not a bad app, it lets you do some basic edits to Word and Excel, the problem is that you can't create and save Word documents, rendering it pretty useless for most uses.
Fingers crossed for MS Office suite on iPad, then I can ditch the laptop.
MS Office would be great. Like the product or not, in the work sector you are stuck with it. I have worked with my work files on an iPod touch with docs to go, and emailed the edited excel files back. No problem except a bigger screen like the iPad would have been nice.
KIN emulator anyone?
@ Arti - "video calls, saving documents (anywhere), editing documents" Not to worry. I'm sure Apple is working on this while you whine.
I'm hoping this is the triumphant return of Microsoft Clippy!
@ Webvex - "Office is just too much of a pig to translate onto a small touch screen device. Also, Microsoft is completely incompetent now."
Ballmer thinks that throwing Windows at any sized screen will work. "Windows Everywhere" really means "We have no new ideas."
As for the incompetence, I think it's because Ballmer is terrified of hurting sales of Microsoft's two cash cows: Windows and Office for Windows. He's a sales manger, not an idea man. All this tablet buzz (iPad and otherwise) can only serve to distract attention and sales from Windows and Office for Windows.
At the root of it all, Microsoft isn't in the software business. They're in the Windows business, and Ballmer knows that.
Oh, and there's one more thing. Paul Thurrott is a paid Microsoft shill and paid anti-Apple hate-blogger. Back in January at CES, he said the Lenovo IdeaPad U1 (laptop with removable screen/tablet) "absolutely kills anything Apple could possibly announce later this month." Apple announced iPad two weeks later and guess what - Lenovo promptly cancelled the IdeaPad U1: http://bit.ly/a6c8bl
I don't think it's office. I believe their Office Cloud Service can fill this void. But I wouldn't be surprised if MS did release a mobile version of Office at a $300+ price tag.
Office would be incredible, but I think they would have to cap the price low like 20 bucks. I would pay more, but most wouldn't pay over 7.99
OneNote, one love.
Bob! Yes!!
Multi-tasking, folders, AirPrint... Add MS Office (ESP Word) into the mix and you will have a near-perfect device! We can only dream...