Apple's iWork will now be compatible with the iPhone and iPod Touch. Photo courtesy Apple

By Chris Foresman, Ars Technica

Apple announced on Tuesday that it has updated its iWork productivity suite for iOS with universal versions compatible with both the iPhone and iPod Touch. Though originally released for the larger iPad, you can now use the iOS-flavored iWork to create and edit word processing, spreadsheet and presentation files on Apple’s pocket-sized mobile devices.

iWork includes Pages, Numbers and Keynote. Apple developed iPad versions when the device was originally launched in April 2010. When we reviewed the apps then, we noted that the iPad’s 10-inch touchscreen worked pretty well and that Apple had done a fairly impressive job of translating the desktop apps to its tablet. However, we also warned that its formatting limitations, awkward file access and inability to print were likely to be serious problems for most users.

Apple has since improved file access a bit by adding iDisk support and adding AirPrint to iOS, which allows wireless printing to a select few HP printers. And while Apple has apparently done a lot of work to shoehorn iWork’s iPad interface onto the 3.5-inch screen of the iPhone, users are likely to run into those same limitations we outlined last year.

You can open files created in the Mac version of iWork or corresponding Microsoft Office applications, edit them, and even send the changes back to the desktop. However, formatting can get bungled in the process, and performing anything other than minor edits using the iPhone or iPod Touch’s tiny keyboard would probably give even the most ardent smartphone typist a headache. Comments from Apple SVP Phil Schiller also suggest the small-screen versions only work with Retina display devices, which means compatibility is limited to the iPhone 4 and fourth-gen iPod Touch. (Apple has not responded to our request for clarification on that point as of publication time.)

Still, the ability to edit Office-type documents right from your phone is pretty impressive in and of itself, and we imagine it could come in handy in emergency situations. We think Apple went in the right direction by building universal apps, so users who already have the iPad versions can get the new iPhone version as a free update.

All three updated apps — Pages, Numbers and Keynote — are available now in the App Store for $9.99 each, or as a free update to existing users.

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