Office on WP inferior to iWork on iPhone?

[unstoppablekem]

Why can't windows phone office users CREATE PowerPoints, and not just get a PowerPoint from your email or skydrive? I mean you can't start a new PowerPoint on Windows Phone for some reason, and it annoys me. Also, if you want to change your text size, you need to keep tapping the letter in format to change it, and can't select an exact size. You also can't change the text style. Office may be better for PC and Tablets, but sadly, Pages is better on the phone. It's a shame, as Microsoft advertises Windows Phone as a business device, and works amazing with office stuff.

 

[BIGPADDY]

Yeah I don't understand why you cant create a new PowerPoint.

Edited: Because I was a fool then was shown the truth by EchoRedux!

 

[EchoRedux]

While the lack of an option bewildered me at first a couple years back, I put some thought into it and realized that it's kinda dumb to think someone productive would ever attempt to make a PowerPoint presentation on a phone.

 

[EchoRedux]

Yeah I don't understand why you cant create a new word, PowerPoint etc. That was the main reason I went to WP for office to create word documents and PowerPoints from my phone and I couldn't do it.

I can create new word and excel documents.....

 

[neo158]

Would you really want to create PowerPoint presentations on a 3.5" - 6" screen, I know that I wouldn't.

Office on Windows Phone is designed for quick edits on the move and not for content creation. WP is meant to be a companion to your PC or Windows based tablet, not a replacement for it.

Microsoft have never advertised WP as a business device, I assume you have proof to the contrary?

 

[BIGPADDY]

I can create new word and excel documents.....

Silly me you can must have forgotten about this!

Hmmm thanks for jogging my memory, I will now start using office more!

 

[jhoff80]

Microsoft might not have, but Nokia sure does. From the 1520 page: "The Nokia Lumia 1520 is a powerhouse of productivity" and "Fit for business. The Nokia Lumia 1520 is a formidable business smartphone with built-in Microsoft Office".

The fact of the matter is that Windows Phone's Office apps are terrible. The only one even worth using is OneNote, and even that pales in comparison to the far superior WinRT/Metro app (which itself is far worse than the desktop version). I'd take WinRT OneNote on my phone any day over what's currently available though.

 

[gsquared]

While the lack of an option bewildered me at first a couple years back, I put some thought into it and realized that it's kinda dumb to think someone productive would ever attempt to make a PowerPoint presentation on a phone.

Best answer I've heard.

 

[neo158]

Microsoft might not have, but Nokia sure does. From the 1520 page: "The Nokia Lumia 1520 is a powerhouse of productivity" and "Fit for business. The Nokia Lumia 1520 is a formidable business smartphone with built-in Microsoft Office".

The fact of the matter is that Windows Phone's Office apps are terrible. The only one even worth using is OneNote, and even that pales in comparison to the far superior WinRT/Metro app (which itself is far worse than the desktop version). I'd take WinRT OneNote on my phone any day over what's currently available though.

OK, other than a phone what two devices do business users use the most?

In which case Nokia must have some magical, future version of Office on their Windows Phones. The rest of us don't. Remember, that's advertising, from Nokia, not Microsoft!!

 

[BIGPADDY]

OK, other than a phone what two devices do business users use the most?

I would guess they would use a tablet typically an iPad.

 

[neo158]

I would guess they would use a tablet typically an iPad.

Possibly, what I'm getting at is that WP is part of a larger ecosystem. You use your tablet and/or your desktop to create content and the phone for simple edits on the go when using a tablet or laptop is impractical.

Does it need improvement, yes it does. Will it rival the desktop for functionality, I seriously doubt it.

 

[unstoppablekem]

I can create new word and excel documents.....

And PowerPoints?

 

[unstoppablekem]

Would you really want to create PowerPoint presentations on a 3.5" - 6" screen, I know that I wouldn't.

Office on Windows Phone is designed for quick edits on the move and not for content creation. WP is meant to be a companion to your PC or Windows based tablet, not a replacement for it.

Microsoft have never advertised WP as a business device, I assume you have proof to the contrary?

First off, does it hurt to add the feature to create PowerPoints? And remember the early days, when they said "The only phone with Xbox live and office"? And now the Lumia 1520 advertisements.

 

[jasqid]

The phone apps of office are for viewing. Its handy for those folks " out in the field" and need to get some info from a document.

 

[unstoppablekem]

The phone apps of office are for viewing. Its handy for those folks " out in the field" and need to get some info from a document.

And about the other issues I brought about?

 

[EchoRedux]

As a heavy Excel user, I have used office on my phone many of times to get a quick view of financial information. I've tried other apps on the iPhone that "support" office files but none have ever loaded information correctly, especially when there are multiple tabs in the file.

The closest thing I've done to editing was to double check a formula here and there. No way am I going to waste time creating a spreadsheet by scratch on a phone, and even editing is a chore. It's great to view office documents, it's free, and unlike most others, it formats the file correctly on your phone. That's the plus. I don't think Windows Phone is marketed by Microsoft as a business device, however Nokia themselves have.

I love Windows Phone and still think it's a better option than iPhone and Android for the average consumer, but there are critical business apps even in my field of work that are available on the other platforms but missing on WP. With that said, I do not recommend Windows Phones to those looking for a solid business device.

I also like giving examples to better inform the crowd since claims should be backed up.

Windows Phone is missing:

Docusign (Available for Win 8)
Salesforce
Checkpoint by Thomson Reuters
Supra eKEY
Square

 

[jhoff80]

The phone apps of office are for viewing. Its handy for those folks " out in the field" and need to get some info from a document.

Yes, but we're getting 6 inch phones and 8 inch tablets now. Why is it that a 6 inch phone is supposed to be only for viewing and not editing or creating, but an 8 inch tablet can be okay to edit on?

And even still. Say sometime in the future I'm giving a presentation, and for some reason want to use Nokia Beamer and the built-in Powerpoint app to do so. But wait, I put the wrong image in the Powerpoint. I'm SOL, just because Microsoft released a near-useless version of what is supposed to be one of their biggest pieces of core functionality?

 

[EchoRedux]

Yes, but we're getting 6 inch phones and 8 inch tablets now. Why is it that a 6 inch phone is supposed to be only for viewing and not editing or creating, but an 8 inch tablet can be okay to edit on?

And even still. Say sometime in the future I'm giving a presentation, and for some reason want to use Nokia Beamer and the built-in Powerpoint app to do so. But wait, I put the wrong image in the Powerpoint. I'm SOL, just because Microsoft released a near-useless version of what is supposed to be one of their biggest pieces of core functionality?

You can edit PowerPoint on Windows Phone, you just cannot create one from scratch. I've never edited one myself so I have no idea if it lets you edit images. Maybe someone else can weigh in on this.

 

[Microsoftjunkie]

What's wrong with them "advertising as a business device"? All of your points are valid, but I see phones being used in tandem. I would normally start from a tablet/ PC then edit if mistakes or alterations are needed from my phone if I'm away.

I do agree more functionality would be welcomed but not necessarily needed. I can easily hit up Skydrive.com and have a robust editing/creating solution better than anything from any platforms store. Only if I had to create something using limited screen.

 

[jhoff80]

You can edit PowerPoint on Windows Phone, you just cannot create one from scratch. I've never edited one myself so I have no idea if it lets you edit images. Maybe someone else can weigh in on this.

You cannot. Only text. And you can't format any of that text at all.

Word is so limited that you can't even adjust the alignment of text, or add a bulleted list, or change a font, or many other basic things. But hey, in that at least you can change font color. Assuming you want it to be red, green, or yellowish.

And let's hope that your spreadsheets aren't password protected, otherwise you can't do anything.