Business Intelligence Vendors Put BI in the Hands of Apple iPad Users

Vangie Beal

Updated · Aug 05, 2011

With more than 28 million iPads sold since its initial release in April 2010, Apple has been the runaway leader in the tablet market – making it a top-choice platform for vendors offering mobile versions of business intelligence and analytics applications.

For end users, mobile business intelligence on the iPad offers unique features to quickly and easily flip through charts and tables, filter information of interest, and drill into more detail while using what is becoming a commonplace computing device in many organizations, said software-as-a-service (SaaS) business intelligence provider Birst Inc.

Birst has announced its version of Birst Mobile for the Apple iPad, providing secure and real-time access to highly interactive and visual SaaS business intelligence. Birst Mobile for the iPad gives users access to business insight that is available to decision makers who are on-the-go,  wherever and whenever they need it.

“The Apple iPad is becoming the tablet of choice for business applications. Built with native iPad support, Birst Mobile for the iPad builds on this trend by providing organizations with a complete BI solution for delivering mobile analytics to their end users, quickly and cost effectively,” said Stefan Schmitz, vice president of products at Birst.

Tableau Software is another vendor that recently launched a mobile version of its business intelligence solution with automatic touch and gesture optimization support for the Apple iPad.

“The ability of Tableau’s mobile BI solution to answer questions wherever they strike is incredibly empowering,” said John Abdo, who is responsible for all web analytics for Cafe Press, a website for creating, buying and selling customized merchandise online. Abdo has been an active participant in the Tableau 6.1 beta. “It’s the same thing Tableau did when they gave non-technical users access to a treasure trove of data.”

In addition to Apple iPad support, accessed via Tableau’s new iPad App or via Mobile Safari, Tableau 6.1 also includes an enhanced its in-memory analytics engine with increased query and loading performance. People can also rapidly update existing extracts in Tableau’s data engine. Other improvements include localization and new maps.

The data engine lets people speed up the performance of massive corporate databases or integrate large files on the fly. For example, daily visitors to an ecommerce site can result in millions of new records in website log files. With Tableau, those companies can keep their data sets current as they rapidly create and share powerful analytical views and reports, said Tableau Software.

Both business intelligence apps – Birst Mobile and Tableau’s new iPad App – are available for download from the Apple App Store.

 

Vangie Beal
Vangie Beal

Vangie is a freelance technology writer who covers Internet technologies, online business, and other topics for over 15 years. SEO Content Writer with high-quality organic search results. Professional freelance technology writer with over 15 years experience. - Understands the technology trends in SMB and Enterprise markets. - Proficient in email marketing and social media campaigns. - Trusted and respected voice in small business marketing via e-commerce. - Knowledgeable in how to incorporate sales initiatives and assets into articles or Web content. Experienced social media marketer. Specialties: SEO. Electronic commerce, small businesses, Internet. Computers, servers, networking. Computer science. Terms, terminology. Social media, email marketing. Mobile apps. Operating systems. Software and hardware. Interviews, tips, advice, guides and feature articles. Marketing, slideshows, how-to guides. Search engine tools.

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