• PRICE £18.68 (ANDROID); £17.99 (iPAD)
• COMPANY LOGMEIN www.logmein.com
PROS
Easy to set up; Perfect for accessing your PC when out and about
CONS
Mousing can be tricky when selecting files
OVERALL SCORE ★ ★★★★
SPECIFICATIONS
Google Android device; Android 1.5 to 2.3.3; Any Mac or PC desktop or laptop, which must be switched on; Wi-Fi or 3G connection; Free LogMeLn account.
Remote access software is all well and good,but the time you really need it is when you are away from any computer. Enter LogMeln Ignition.An app for both Android and iPad, LogMeln gives you control of your computer, from anywhere you can connect to the web. Setup is easy. Install the app, then download and install the free client software to the computers you want to access. In the Ignition app, log in with your email address and password: you now control all the computers associated with your LogMeln account.And there you have it: your computer desktop looms large on your tablet, with the controls at your fingertips.
It's not as easy to use your computer via a tablet as it is from a desktop keyboard. Getting used to mousing is tricky: you move the mouse with a finger; or the mouse sits in the middle of the screen while you move the display around. To open or close a window on the remote desktop you must pan so that the icon is positioned under the mouse pointer, then double-tap on the screen.
" 0n a tablet it makes remote access of your desktop computer simple and useful"
In use, this means that accessing and editing files is perfectly feasible, although you wouldn't want to be typing out long reports. However, this app could be a game changer - a businessman friend told us that he no longer carries a laptop when he travels, preferring to access his desktop computer via the iPad.
You can limit the remote computer's screen size, resolution and colour quality to save bandwidth, and specify whether your network is a LAN or Internet connection. During tests, we had no trouble at all remotely using various computers on the default settings.
Verdict
As apps go it's not cheap, but we're smitten with LogMeln Ignition. Easy to install and use, cool and practical. On a tablet it makes remote access of your desktop computer simple and useful to such an extent that it makes the device as useful a high-end laptop.An essential purchase for all tablet owners.
ANDROID OfficeSuite Pro
One of a growing number of apps that bolster Android's weak support for office documents.
• PRICE £9.28
• COMPANY MOBILE SYSTEMS www.mohisystems.com
OfficeSuite Pro has an integrated file browser that allows you to view Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and PDF files on your tablet, SD Card, and configured Google Documents accounts,You can also create and edit Word and Excel files, but oddly enough you can't save them on Google Docs only your tablet and SD Card. If you can't send document edits back to Google Docs, what's the point?
As a document viewer, OfficeSuite Pro is not spectacular. Some document formatting, such as table headings in Word, display improperly. PDF flies are readable but load slowly, and bookmarks don't seem to work. PDFs also don't have any search/find capability. Excel spreadsheets are viewable and searchable, but formulas don't always work for new entries.A spreadsheet that can't calculate formulas with new data is not very useful. A Word file created in the app also crashed our desktop OpenOffice word processor when we transferred it to our computer.
Verdict
Frankly, there isn't much reason to choose OfficeSuite Pro over competing offerings such as Documents to Go or AlwaysOnPC. OfficeSuite just doesn't function as well as other apps.
PROS & CONS
Access Word files on your tablet; Can't save to Google Docs; Formulas don't work with new data
OVERALL SCORE ★ ★★
SPECIFICATIONS
Google Android device; Android 1.5 or later; Support for Microsoft Office 97 to 2010 documents; Enhanced for high-resolution Android tablets.
iPAD FTP on the Go
No-fuss client that allows you to transfer files and perform server-based management tasks.
• PRICE £3.99
• COMPANY HEADLIGHT SOFTWARE www.ftponthego.com
For many people,maintaining a website has become an integral part of their working life, regardless of whether they're employed by a large corporation or small start-up.When you need to get an image from your iPad's camera to a website, or quickly replace that file displaying an actionable typo, nothing works like FTP.
There are several FTP clients for the iPad, but FTP on the Go is a solid, no-fuss client that allows you to transfer files as well as create directories,delete files,and perform all the other server-based file management tasks we've come to expect from a personal computer FTP client.The app is simple to set up and use, but it also has loads of advanced features, ranging from a text editor (handy if you need to correct a page) and a wide variety of security options to the ability for others to download files from your iPad via FTP.
Verdict
FTP on the Go is a sophisticated piece of software for managing files and websites on your iPad. If you maintain your own site or part of your job description includes site maintenance, the day will come when an FTP server is a job-saving tool.When that day arrives, FTP on the Go is a must-have app in the palm of your hand.
PROS & CONS
Perform server-based management tasks; Built-in text editor; plenty of extra features
OVERALL SCORE ★ ★★★
SPECIFICATIONS
Apple i Pad; Website with FTP features; Download, edit, and upload web pages or other text files on your FTP servers; Browse folders on your FTP servers; Built-in text editor.
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