3 Key Business Apps For Tablets

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- For all the techno dust-ups going on between such tablet PCs as the Apple(AAPL) iPad, Motorola(MOT) Xoom, Samsung Galaxy Tab and all the rest, for real-world business use, tablet computers are just like any computer: The hardware is mostly beside the point.

Yes, the iPad 2 might be marginally spiffier, the Tab a bit smaller, the BlackBerry(RIMM) PlayBook a bit faster. But what really matters for making money is the software a tablet offers business users. After all, the code you must touch is what enables you to do the work you must touch.

Every small-businessperson will be trying to work on the go with tablets this summer, and they'll need the right apps to succeed.

Considering that this is shaping up to be the summer of the tablet -- every small-business somebody will be attempting to do their jobs on the go with tablets this June, July and August -- it seems time for the definitive breakout list of must-have small-business functions and apps.

Be able to process documents: Documents To Go Premium ($17)
Whatever business you're in, you're also in the document business. And if you're going to do documents for business from a tablet, you are going to need a real document processor; that is DataViz's Documents To Go -- and not the demo version. (That's right, stifle that inner cheapskate and pay the 17 whole dollars for the premium app.) Though the tool is far -- and I mean far -- from a legitimate word processor, spreadsheet or PowerPoint tool (advanced functions are simply maddening on this tool) assuming you invest in an add-on keyboard for your tablet, Documents To Go lets you reasonably edit, manage and otherwise work with Microsoft(MSFT) Word files, Excel spreadsheets and all the rest. The app is equally effective on Apple devices and Google(GOOG) Android platforms. Overall, Documents To Go offers as smooth an office environment for tablets as there is on the market.