The Google Drive iPad app is practically worthless without document editing
As a heavy Google user, one of the first things I did when I got my iPad was to install the Google Drive application. I use it heavily on all of my Android devices and desktop computers to sync my documents, and it is essential for my workflow so that I can edit any of my documents from any device or computer. When I opened Google’s Drive application for the iPad, I expected to be greeted with a well designed and functional app which took advantage of the iPad’s display size and touchscreen for document editing. And while the app certainly looks good, some very basic functions that I expected simply aren’t there.
Primarily, my problem is that the app doesn’t include any basic editing features. At all. I’m not expecting any complicated rich text editor from an iPad app, but from Google I expect at least some basic text editing features so that I can write up at least some simple documents with the keyboard that I purchased with that purpose in mind. Instead, the Google Drive app for iPad is little more than a document reader. Yes, it can be used to read plenty of document formats, but it can’t even organize documents into folders. In fact, the only real editing that can be done is changing the name of documents.
Fortunately, the online version of Google Docs does function fairly well in Chrome on the iPad, but it is hardly the ideal solution. In order for the iPad to be a really productive tool in my personal use, it has to work better with Google Drive document editing. Oddly enough, the responsibility for this problem falls on Google and not Apple, so even though I am a Google fan, I have to say that the Google Drive iOS app is below par, and hindering my use of the iPad as a productivity device.
