Quickoffice Pro HD for iPad, like iWork for iPad ($9.99 each for Keynote, Numbers, and Pages, 4 stars) and Smart Office for iPad ($9.99, 2.5 stars), aims to bring a well-rounded mobile office suite to Apple's slate. This $19.99 iPad app  performs many of the basic document, presentation, and slideshow functions that you'd expect from a mobile office suite (file editing, sharing), but crowns it with compatibility with a wide array of cloud-based services and the ability to wireless transfer files to a computer. The affordably priced apps is nearly $10 less than Apple's iWork for iPad, but that doesn't mean it's a no-brainer purchase; it lacks the rich templates Cupertino's suite, and the file sharing method may irk some users.

Getting Started With Quickoffice Pro HD
Launching Quickoffice Pro HD opened a three-column screen that's bordered by menu bars on its top and bottom. The left column contained a hard disk icon that when tapped displayed folders and files in the middle column; the right showcased file information or the files within folders. You aren't limited to what's on the disk; Quickoffice Pro HD has more flexibility than iWork and Smart Office when it comes to pulling files from the cloud. Taping the "+" icon in the lower left corner of the screen opened the Connected File Manager, which lets users remotely access, transfer, save, and manage files saved in several cloud-based services such as Google Docs, Dropbox, Evernote, SugarSync, MobileMe, and more. These are more options than are integrated with iWork or Smart Office (I'll delve further into this below). The lower-right corner contained icons that let you create a new folder and file (documents, spreadsheets, or presentation) when touched. Between the two corners are delete, email, and sharing icons. The upper-right corner has help and settings icons.  Overall, I found the layout intuitive and simple to navigate.

Getting Things Done

I decided to begin by opening a blank document, so I tapped the documents icon. A window opened which offered "Presentation 2003 Format," "Spreadsheet 2003 Format," "Spreadsheet 2007 Format," "Document 2003 Format," Document 2007 Format," and "Text File." These six options are far less than Smart Office's twelve, and iWork's sixteen. iWork for iPad offers not only more templates, but they're also given specific names and designs that let you specifically know what they're about. Would you rather create a resume from Quickofice Pro HD's "Document 2007 Format" or Page's properly-formatted and easily identifiable "Classic Resume" or "Modern Photo Resume"?

Regardless, I opened a blank document and immediately began typing a few sentences Quickoffice Pro HD doesn't auto-save files, so you have to tap Close> Save (or Save As) in essential to preserving data. You can save files to PDF, which is a nice touch. Like iWork (and unlike Smart Office) there are formatting icons in the documents/presentations/spreadsheets menu bar, which makes adding bold and italics a breeze (you can also tweak the font, font color, and paragraph alignment by bringing a finger to the large "A" in the upper-right corner). Also, when you tap a spreadsheet cell, you can key in data using the virtual keyboard—Smart Office required that I add formatting, alignment, and other options from a pop-up menu, which was frustrating. Quickoffice Pro HD has a rudimentary slideshow creator that let me add photos, shapes, and text to slides.

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You can log into as many cloud-based services as you wish from the home screen, and when you do, service icons appear in the left column. I logged into my Dropbox and Google Docs accounts and opened files with ease, which was welcomed as Smart Office had problems launching Google Docs files. If you have the SharePlus Pro app installed, you can open, edit, and save SharePoint files.

Sharing Files and File Sharing
You can e-mail files to friends and colleagues, and share files via Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Yammer, Slideshare, Docstac, and Scribd, but the method of doing so isn't obvious. You have to drag a file to the email or sharing icons located at the bottom of the screen, which is awkward (file deletion works in a similar manner). I would've much preferred if the app gave me the option to press and hold a file to open a sharing window, or tap a "delete" button. Still, it offered far more flexibility in working with cloud services than either iWork or Smart Office.

Quickoffice Pro HD also lets you transfer files between a computer and iPad (that are connected to the same Wi-Fi signal) by keying in the supplied IP address into a browser and upload and downloading files using the Web interface. I found it simple to use, and the documents appeared moved between platforms swiftly. You can also do it the old fashioned way by connecting the iPad to computer. It's also compatible with iOS's AirPrint functionality.

Should You Purchase Quickoffice Pro HD for iPad?
Yes. Quickoffice is light years ahead of Smart Office in terms of usability, and even boasts features that the Editors' Choice Award-winning iWork doesn't possess. It can use some improvements—such as more templates and better file sharing—but it's a competent mobile office suite that's both easy to use and easy on the wallet.

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