Too Little, Too Late: Office Comes To The iPad

In a long-anticipated move, Microsoft has released a version of the ubiquitous Office Suite for iPad. Yes, now anyone can edit Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents on an iPad. Of course, you always could.

Off the top of my head, there’s Apple’s iWork solution, now free with new iOS devices. Plus, there’s Google’s Drive solution as well as QuickOffice. I’m sure a search of the App Store will reveal oodles more. We’ll give Microsoft credit though; instead of being lazy and blowing up the iPhone version, the iPad version is its own animal, specifically designed for the iPad’s screen. It is, in that sense, unique. But in the sense of offering a solution that wasn’t there? Hardly.

So, what’s the point of Office for iPad? The price is telling. While free as readers, editing requires an Office 365 subscription. That suggests that this is aimed at businesses already using Microsoft’s Office online solution that want to keep everything in one arena. That means you can bring your own device, but use the company Office account. If you’re the average user though, Office is one app you can leave off your iPad.