One of the big complaints from business users is the lack of document editing on the iPhone. It is indeed puzzling that it has taken so long for a solid document editing app to make its way into the App Store. Of course, this is partly due to the iPhone’s lack of copy-paste, which is a much needed tool for document editing. QuickOffice, a company famous for making mobile office apps for the Blackberry and Symbian, released their first app “MobileFiles” some time back. It offered free iDisk access, and worked fine at doing just that. 

Early January however, QuickOffice released MobileFiles Pro. This was the first iPhone app to be able to edit XLS files. Just today, QuickOffice releases MobileFiles 2.0, another app that has iDisk access and Wifi storage. MobileFiles free on the other hand still limits itself to the free iDisk usage and hasn’t been updated since December 2008. 

iDisk usage

You can access your entire iDisk, or just view the public folder of anyone. MobileFiles has a splendid UI for viewing your files, and if you prefer to keep a file stored locally, you can download it to the iPhone. You can also mass download/delete files. Using the Pro version you can create XLS files directly on your iDisk. With version 2.0 and Pro, you can email these documents on the go. 

Wifi Storage

Limited to the 2.0 and Pro versions, Wifi storage allows you to transfer files from any Mac or PC on the same network. You enter a url in your web browser after which you are shown the upload page. Add your files and hit upload. You cannot however mount your drive in Finder or Explorer, which means you cannot drag and drop multiple files or folders. You can passcode protect Wifi access as well as edit folders on your iPhone via the web UI. Oddly though, you need to actually launch the Wifi feature from within the app for it to function.

I won’t say the Wifi access is as solid as Air Sharing or some of the others, but it is definitely nice to have along with the iDisk functionality. It is nice to see iPhone apps doing multiple functions. 

Excel editing

I first need to declare that I’m not a spreadsheet user so I don’t know head nor tail about the concept. However, as common sense dictates, I do know how programs should work. After using the spreadsheet tool for a while, I have mixed feelings. First of all, I don’t know who will in their right mind want to edit files on an iPhone. Here we are on widescreen monitors spanning dozens of cells, while on the iPhone we have to deal with scrolling around a bunch.

That said, the spreadsheet app is not half that bad. Pinching out of the zoomed in view, I could see quite a bit. Turning the device sideways showed even more (while hiding all controls). To edit any cell, you double tap it. You can also edit it directly from the formula editor thing, which shows up only in the portrait mode.

At the bottom lie controls for formatting options (bold, italics, cell background), a number format (to set the cell into dollars, date, etc), changing sheets, adding columns, and an undo button. Fairly functional for on-the-go editing. At the top lies the formula bar. Tapping the fx will bring up the formula editor, where you can tap through different options. Like I said, I’m not knowledgeable in spreadsheets so I can’t figure out what they mean.

All in all, the MobileFiles Pro spreadsheet app deserves a pat on the back. I didn’t think that spreadsheet editing on a device like the iPhone was possible. Sure you can’t really expect anyone to work on a spreadsheet like they do on a desktop, but if you find yourself stuck at the doctor’s office, you can whip out your iPhone, access your xls file from your iDisk folder, and edit it right there. Once you’re done, you can even email it right from the device (also available in the 2.0 version). 

Which one?

If you just need the iDisk access, you can’t go wrong with MobileFiles free. If you’re thinking of purchasing an iPhone wifi storage application and need the iDisk access, MobileFiles 2.0 will not disappoint at $3.99. And if you need to occasionally edit XLS files on the go, I’d say MobileFiles Pro is appropriately priced at $9.99. If you have any questions regarding these apps, or need screenshots of any particular feature let me know in the comments.