Office, iWork or Docs? Here is the Office App Buyer’s Guide for that
Microsoft Office is the king of office apps, until Google Docs, Apple iWork and ten other office productivity tools suddenly arrived. When mobile OS like Android, iOS, Windows Phone, and Blackberry starts spreading in the app stores, the number of office workers composing letters, summing up costs and sliding reports quickly multiplied. And here comes cloud computing. Office apps suddenly became accessible anytime, anywhere, on any device.
The question now is: which office apps suite is for you?
If you’re planning to launch an investment on new office apps, better conduct an evaluation first. If you’re the type of office worker who never wants to sacrifice the quality of work, invest on the right office solution.
Docs, Office, iWork or another office app? Here is the Office App Buyer’s Guide to help you on that.
1. Check the Features. Which app can provide what I need?
Microsoft Office has Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Google Docs has Docs, Sheets and Slides. Apple has Pages, Numbers and Keynote.
I happened to read a comprehensive review of these three products and it appears that Microsoft is really the winner when it comes to features. Word has hundreds of templates to choose from. Excel has tons of powerful formulas. PowerPoint is perfect for classroom, boardroom and conference hall presentations.
Despite being advanced, Microsoft might not have all the features an office worker needs. When it comes to great balance between feature set and ease of use, iWork is better. When it comes to collaboration feature, Google Docs can be best.
So ask yourself. Does this product have all the features that I really need?
2. Analyze the Cloud Performance: Can I access my work anywhere, anytime?
If you’re working in a virtual office, you definitely need cloud storage apps like Drive, DropBox and iCloud. The important features to highly consider when working online with your documents are syncing, sharing and collaboration.
Google Apps for Work is a cloud-based office suite used by more than 5 million businesses. Office 365 Business, the online version of Office, has full-installed office apps and can be used by up to 300 users. With iCloud, maximum of 100 users can collaborate on documents created out of Pages, Numbers and Keynote.
It seems that each player is able to provide a collaborative environment. But since your data will be saved in the cloud, you also have to double-check the security and accessibility features each product can provide.
3. Determine the Platform Compatibility. Can it run on my device?
The latest version of Office suite, Office 2013, supports PCs running on Windows 7 or higher and Macs running on Mac OS X 10.6 or higher. For Office to run on iOS and Android, there are additional system requirements that should be met.
With Google Docs, you can create, edit and share docs from your iPhone, iPad or Android devices. But if you want to work on Google Docs using your Mac or PC, the main requirement is that you have to use a Chrome browser.
It is important to know those system requirements before purchasing the office app. Determine if it is compatible with the platform you are using by going through the technical notes in the product’s specification sheet.
4. Evaluate the Price. Should I pay one-time, enrol a subscription or get the free edition?
The cost of something is what you give up to get it. But how would you decide on when to give up on cost?
Consider this.
Office 365 Business is offered via monthly subscription at $8.25 per user per month, with an annual commitment. Office Home & Business 2013 is offered as one-time payment at the price of $219.99 per PC. Office Online is offered for free. Which product are you going to get?
Recommendation
Investing in software solution requires good planning. Undergoing this 4-steps process can lead you to the right buying decision.
