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Review: Quickoffice for iOS and Android

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If there is one function that I want most of all in mobile devices in the ability to inter-operate between platforms.  Since I like to get the best of all worlds, in this case iOS and Android, I don’t like the idea of being locked down to a particular device just to be able to do work.  I don’t want to assume that the device I have my work on will be with me at all times, as I have had times where I needed something and the device I had at the time didn’t have that item I wanted as it was on something else.  This is why I have come to enjoy “Quickoffice”.

Quickoffice-logo

 

 

Quickoffice is not anything new as for coming onto the app platforms, it has been out for a few years.  Google  bought them back in June 2012.  If you don’t remember this app from last year, here is the original logo.

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I’ll be honest that I had forgotten about Google buying this app last year, so I thought this was a completely new app.  Oh how time flies.

The biggest thing they do promote in the app, regardless of platform, is signing into your Google Drive account, so you can make documents, spreadsheets, and presentations on your phone and have it uploaded to Google Drive to be accessible from a web browser or another device.  You do have the ability to save directly on the device, but as suggestion, it would be best to save to both for backup purposes.  Saving directly to your phone will allow for offline access in case you are in an area that does not have cell phone service, like a subway.

During my testing of both iOS and Android versions of the app, I found it to be very simple to use.  The document creator was as simple as tapping on the screen to pull up the keyboard and type away.  The spreadsheet was the same way, only if I wanted to do something like calculations, I would have to search through the list of functions like SUM.  The presentation creator was as simple as double tapping on the cells to create titles and descriptions, just like on a desktop computer.

I wish there were some really awesome functions that isn’t found on any other office productivity app, but I couldn’t find them, though they are probably there and it wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you on this review.

The app is free on iOS App Store and Android Play Store.

The iOS version is compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.  One app to rule them all!

If you use Apple’s productivity apps like Pages, Numbers, and Keynote, I say give Quickoffice a try.  Look at it as more of a backup of your documents to the cloud where you are not locked down to a single location.  iCloud is a good place to store your documents, but it’s only viewable on an Apple product.  There might come a time where you need a document, but don’t have access to an Apple device.  Whereas iCloud gives only 5GB of free storage, Google Drive begins with 15GB of free storage.  Any documents that you make on Google Drive does not count to your storage, although I want to say that I am not sure if documents you make on your phone or tablet will count.  I will research that and update soon.

So go out there and have fun with making documents on the go, if there is a fun side to that.

Have Fun and Geek Out!

ReadQuick – Speed Reader for iOS” from Action Now

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I’ll be honest, I have never been a fan of reading books.  I always found them boring as compared to the thrilling action of a video game.  Reading web articles can get boring too as I sit and stare at the screen, having to scroll down every few seconds.  After a while of either staring at a computer screen or in a book, the words seem to fade away as the background, which is typically white, seems to bleed onto the words.  Well, now I have found a new way of reading web articles that makes it seem fun.  I now use “ReadQuick – Speed Reader for iOS”.

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“ReadQuick” is an app that helps you learn how to speed read.  You might think that learning how to speed read will be hard, as you might not be able to understand what the message is.  This app is able to help you develop that skill of speed reading by showing you one word at a time.  The science behind it is that your brain will recognize the word without having to read it letter by letter.  The length of how long that word is on the screen depends on how many words you want to read in a minute.  It ranges from 50 to 800 wpm (words per minute).  If you think 50 wpm is a lot, try to read this article word by word every second, equaling 60 wpm and you’ll get the idea that it may be too slow for most people.  By default, the app is set to run at 250 wpm.

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When you open the app for the first time, it will ask if you want to subscribe to their mailing list for “updates, tips, and speed reading info.”  There is also information on how to use the wpm slider  and how to access articles directly from the web or from you news stream using Instapaper or Pocket.  Personally, I use Google Currents to search for articles that I can save to Instapaper to read later, then go log in my Instapaper account on ReadQuick and speed read the articles there.

The top left button will bring up the menu on the left side of the screen.  Some of the options are reading articles from Instapaper and Pocket as well as a “Featured” section that has at least 8 different new sources that make ReadQuick really useful.  In the “ReadQuick” section, there is an article that will give you a description of what the app is and how it works.

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You can track your stats of how well your speed reading is going.  It can track how many words you have read in a week, month, and year.  It will also give your average speed and top news sources.

I could write a ton more about how awesome this app is, but that would take the fun out of your experience in trying it out yourself.

The only downside I have found is that the app costs $4.99 on the Apple App Store.  It’s not a cheap price, but I think you get your money’s worth since you can access tons of articles on the web and learn how to speed read through them.  It one app that works on iPhone/iPod touch and the iPad.  It has a native resolution on the iPad so it doesn’t look like the crunched down version from the iPhone like some other apps do.

I’ve only had the app for less than a month and already I am up to 350 wpm.  At times I have attempted to read an article at 800 wpm, of which I know I am getting better at since I am able to get bigger pieces of information at that speed than in the beginning when it was all a blur.

This app is a good way of impressing other people when they happen to see you staring at your iPhone or iPad and they just see words flashing in a split second and wonder how you can read that fast.

I doubt that you will be able to speed read so fast that you will flip through books in like 5 seconds much like what Data from “Star Trek: The Next Generation” could do in some episodes.  If you can, make a YouTube video of your ability and prove it to the world.

If you want more information from the creator of this app, just check out http://readquickapp.com/.  They will have the link to the App Store there too.

Have fun and geek out!