the mobile office | COVER STORY
THE PERFECT DEVICE Manufacturers continue to warily feel out which device size is perfect for the travelling business consumer, straddling the gap between large smartphones and small tablets, regular laptops and tablets with keyboards. A tablet or smartphone needs to be large enough to properly see projects or presentations and work on them while you’re on that high-speed train heading to your meeting. Yet it also needs to be small enough to conveniently slip into your bag. Many are favouring the convenience of 10, 11 or 12-inch hybrid devices to fit both needs, such as the Microsoft Surface or the HP Envy, but the jury is still out.
Microsoft Office Suite
APPS TO OPTIMISE BUSINESS
THE MOBILE OFFICE ALLOWS YOU TO BE MORE PRODUCTIVE BECAUSE YOU HAVE CONTROL OVER WHERE AND HOW YOU WORK
iOS/Android/ BlackBerry®/
Basecamp
Windows Phone
iOS/Web
Microsoft Word, Excel and
This software has long been
PowerPoint remain the stalwarts
used for project management,
of any system, and sticking
but it has now been
with them avoids complicated
incorporated into an app on
and annoying document
iPhone as well. It stores your
conversions that might not
projects online, letting your
impress your colleagues or
office team, your clients and
clients. Although available
vendors access everything
across all platforms, it’s easiest
that’s happening with projects.
to use with Windows Phones.
Individual schedules are
Office.microsoft.com
displayed on a calendar, files are accessible online, and
None of this functionality will mean much however
Remember the Milk
everything stays organised.
without internet connectivity. Most cell phone contracts
iOS/Android/BlackBerry®/Web
Basecamp.com
come with data packages, but if you need your tablet or
This friendly to-do list is great
your laptop to get serious work done, portable modems
because of its versatility and
Bizness Apps
or routers are essential for when you can’t find a Wi-Fi
simplicity. It works across
iOs/Android/Web
connection. You can even use your cell phone as a
almost all platforms, and allows
Why trawl the internet for apps
modem, which lets you connect wherever you are. If
you not only to list everything
that suit your business when
you need to do in your day,
you can create your own?
but lets you share your tasks,
Bizness Apps is easy to use -
get reminders and even share
start from an industry-specific
with other programmes like
template and expand your
Evernote and Twitter.
app using various features
www.rememberthemilk.com
like shopping carts, loyalty
you’re travelling abroad, make sure roaming is activated so you can use your normal services there too.
Having a mobile office isn’t just about streaming contacts, emails and documents through a portable device though - it can also become a kind of personal
programmes or food ordering.
assistant. The organisationally impaired might look
www.biznessapps.com
to a time monitoring app like RescueTime, which
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