Google Docs app comes to Android smartphones and tablets

Google has launched a dedicated Google Docs app for Android smartphones and tablets designed to boost productivity on the move by allowing seamless access to files.

Users can search Google accounts for files and edit them using the online mobile editor, as well as create documents and spreadsheets. The application also allows for the sharing of items with contacts from within the app.

The app allows users to upload content from a device and open documents directly from Gmail, explained Google software engineer Reuben Kan in the Official Google Enterprise Blog.

"You can also add a widget to your home screen for easy access to three core tasks: jumping to your starred documents, taking a photo to upload, or creating a new document with one tap," he said.

"Using the app and your phone's camera, you can turn photos with text into editable Google documents with the power of optical character recognition [OCR]."

Images can be created using the ‘Document from Photo' feature or by selecting a camera icon from the widget. The image appears in the documents list shortly after being converted into the appropriate format.

Photos already stored on a device can also be shared with the Google Docs app, but Kan explained that OCR will not recognise handwriting or some fonts at present.

The Google Docs app works with Android 2.1 or above, and can be downloaded free from the Android Market.