Alternatives to Microsoft's Office for iPad app

Office for iPad is finally available for Apple users. You can download the app for free to open documents on the tablet. This will include Word, Excel and PowerPoint, each of them optimised for touch control. But to edit existing documents or create new ones, you will have to use the Office 365 subscription.

While it took Microsoft years to launch the app and that too at a price for the full version, there are plenty of other documentations apps - both free and paid ones - that you can consider.

Apple iWork

Apple's iWork is a productivity suite offering word processing, spreadsheet and presentation capabilities. Coming from Apple, it works flawlessly on the iPad. iWork is a paid app, but it is available for free for those who buy a new iOS-based device.

Documents Unlimited Suite This is yet another popular alternative on the iPad. It isn't a free app and costs $19.99. But every cent spent is worth it as it comes with a distinctly Office-like design, allowing users to create and edit everything from Word documents to PowerPoint presentations. The app also integrates with OpenOffice for those in the open-source community.

Documents To Go Premium

There is a free Documents To Go app but the Premium version offers a complete suite with the ability to create and edit Office documents. It also supports cloud storage for those who want to share files over the Web. Documents To Go Premium can be downloaded for $16.99.

Polaris Office 5

Polaris Office 5 offers all the features you require to edit Office documents. The company claims to have over 500 editing options for Office documents, and it can handle 300 data-analysis inputs. All this means is that the app is capable of performing the sophisticated functions Office users would expect. It comes for $12.99.

QuickOffice

QuickOffice, which comes from Google, allows users to both create and edit Office documents, spreadsheets and presentations on their iPads. Unlike other apps in this roundup, QuickOffice is free and it works quite well. It is a worthy option, given how expensive its competitors are.