Look, it’s no secret that Microsoft and Dropbox have been getting cozy with each other . Why, just last November the two companies cooked up a way to launch the correct Office apps to edit documents lounging in your Dropbox locker. Now, thanks to a new update from that unlikely duo, you don’t even need to have Office installed to edit your Word, Powerpoint and Excel files — hitting that Open button while you’re previewing a document within a web browser gives you the ability to tweak everything from inside Microsoft’s Office Online. Naturally, the integration runs both ways too, so Office Online users can pull up files straight from their Dropbox accounts without so much as firing up a new tab. If you’ve been paying attention, today’s move won’t come as much of a surprise — the eventual intersection of Dropbox’s cloud storage and Microsoft’s strictly web-based Office suite was in the cards from the very beginning. With this update now in place, Dropbox has wrapped up all of the Microsoft-y initiatives it laid out last year (remember the Dropbox Windows Phone app?), and now we’re just left wondering if there’s any more mileage to squeeze out of a major partnership like this. Neither company has ever admitted how many people have taken advantage of these deep Office hooks, and it doesn’t seem likely that Microsoft will extend too many more niceties to users of a rival storage service, but hey — maybe the taste of a more unified experience tempted a few Dropbox customers to jump ship. Comments Source: Microsoft Office blog

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Dropbox and Microsoft just made it easier to edit files in the cloud

Last year Mophie, a company best known for its mobile battery offerings, stepped into slightly new territory by releasing a battery-toting iPhone case with external storage dubbed the “Space Pack.” Now, as if on cue, Mophie is unveiling new entries in the Space Pack line for the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, and iPad Mini. And, not to be forgotten, there’s also a new standalone battery pack called the “Spacestation.” They all look very similar to Mophie’s existing battery solutions, but they include anywhere from 32GB to 128 GB of flash storage, which could be useful for anyone stuck with a paltry 16GB iPhone or iPad Mini. But, as is typical for Mophie, that convenience won’t come cheap. The iPhone Space Packs and the Spacestation start at $150 for 32GB of storage, and jump up to $200 for 64GB and $300 for 128GB. The iPad Mini pack, meanwhile, runs from $200 to $400. Just like before, all of the storage-toting cases work together with Mophie’s Space app, which lets you manage and play media. iOS doesn’t recognize external storage like Android, so you won’t have access to the files on Mophie’s cases from any other apps. The company has also updated the Space app for managing files already on your iPhone — you won’t even need to own a Mophie case to use it. That allows you to create playlists that include media on both your iOS device and the Space case. As for additional battery life, Mophie’s bread and butter, the iPhone 6 case will double your battery life, while the iPhone 6 Plus case will give you another 50 percent of juice. That’s pretty much what you’ll get from one of the company’s new Juice Pack cases . If you don’t need a case, the Spacestation might be the best overall deal since it can fully recharge an iPad Mini and plug into a variety of devices. If you’ve handled a Mophie product before, you know what to expect from the Space lineup. In my brief hands-on time, the new cases and battery pack all felt like like premium products. The Spacestation’s metal case, in particular, feels great in your hand. The iPad Mini Space Case also marks the first time the company has created a battery case for a tablet. It adds a bit of thickness to the Mini, but it doesn’t harm its portability much. Yes, they’re expensive, but if you’re a media addict on iOS, you don’t have many other choices for additional storage without jumping to wireless hard drives or the cloud. You can preorder all of Mophie’s new Space products now, and they’re expected to ship in May. Filed under: Mobile Comments

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Mophie’s ‘Space’ battery cases bring more storage to iPhone 6, iPad Mini