Google Docs Viewer For iPhone, iPad And Android
by Joe White
June 29, 2010
Not long ago, Google announced on its blog that the Google Docs Viewer added support for .doc and .docx attachments - this was great news for those of you who often receive Microsoft Word files in Gmail.
Now, Google has some more great news for iDevice owners: a version of Google Docs Viewer has just been released for iPhone, iPad (and Android). Google Docs Viewer allows users to view the PDF, .ppt, .doc and .docx files they've uploaded to their documents list - without having to download the file.
This feature will undoubtedly help iPhone users interact with documents online - for the meantime, at least, until iWork for iPhone is released. Even iPad users, who already have the ability to download and view files in iWork or iBooks, will appreciate the ability to bypass the oft-boring task of downloading a document over a data network (if you're not connected to Wi-Fi), which is always a pain...
The service itself works pretty well. You can switch quickly between pages, and even pinch the screen to zoom in and out - which makes the experience feel all the more natural. As you can see from the picture above, Google Docs Viewer also gives users the opportunity to download the document if you like what you see.
Why not give Google Docs Viewer a test run by heading over to docs.google.com on your iDevice. Let us know how it works for you in the comments box below. Personally, I'm not much of a Google Docs user, but this new addition to the service might just make me change my ways.
