Groups | Search | Server Info | Keyboard shortcuts | Login | Register [http] [https] [nntp] [nntps]

Groups > comp.mobile.android > #156675 > unrolled thread

What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android?

Started byMaria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com>
First post2026-10-28 03:23 -0400
Last post2026-10-30 15:11 -0400
Articles 10 on this page of 70 — 11 participants

Back to article view | Back to comp.mobile.android

Contents

  What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-28 03:23 -0400
    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Richmond <dnomhcir@gmx.com> - 2026-10-28 09:12 +0000
      Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-29 23:56 -0400
        Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E. R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-31 15:16 +0100
          Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-31 11:52 -0400
            Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> - 2026-10-31 16:55 +0000
              Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-31 13:38 -0400
            Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E. R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-31 19:43 +0100
    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> - 2026-10-28 11:57 +0100
      Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-10-28 17:20 +0000
        Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-28 15:32 -0400
          Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Richmond <dnomhcir@gmx.com> - 2026-10-28 19:51 +0000
            Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-28 16:12 -0400
              Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-10-28 20:53 +0000
                Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-28 21:11 -0400
                  Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-29 12:13 +0100
                    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-29 14:31 -0400
                      Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> - 2026-10-29 18:34 +0000
                        Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-29 15:23 -0400
                      Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-29 20:46 +0100
                        Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-29 20:56 -0400
                          Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-10-30 16:46 +0000
                            Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-30 14:29 -0400
                          Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E. R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-31 19:23 +0100
              Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Richmond <dnomhcir@gmx.com> - 2026-10-28 21:23 +0000
                Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-28 22:37 -0400
                  Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Richmond <dnomhcir@gmx.com> - 2026-10-29 09:23 +0000
                    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-29 21:13 -0400
                      Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Richmond <dnomhcir@gmx.com> - 2026-10-30 07:09 +0000
          Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-28 20:53 +0100
            Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-28 22:51 -0400
              Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-29 12:16 +0100
          Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-10-28 20:34 +0000
            Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-28 22:51 -0400
              Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-10-29 16:28 +0000
                Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-29 14:54 -0400
                  Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-10-30 16:35 +0000
                    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-30 14:46 -0400
                      Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-10-30 20:02 +0000
                        Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-31 13:01 -0400
                          Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E. R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-31 19:29 +0100
                    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E. R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-31 19:17 +0100
                Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-29 20:53 +0100
                  Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-31 13:11 -0400
        Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> - 2026-10-29 09:10 +0100
          Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-29 15:43 -0400
            Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-29 15:45 -0400
              Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Nuno Silva <nunojsilva@invalid.invalid> - 2026-10-30 01:28 +0000
            Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> - 2026-10-30 15:24 +0100
              Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> - 2026-10-30 15:28 +0100
                Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-30 14:58 -0400
                  Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E. R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-31 19:09 +0100
    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Nuno Silva <nunojsilva@invalid.invalid> - 2026-10-28 11:28 +0000
    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-28 12:26 +0100
    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2026-10-28 11:31 +0000
    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? MCSM <despammed@mcsm.anonaddy.me> - 2026-10-28 13:32 +0100
    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Jeff Layman <Jeff@invalid.invalid> - 2026-10-28 13:21 +0000
      Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-28 18:22 +0100
        Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Jeff Layman <Jeff@invalid.invalid> - 2026-10-29 09:08 +0000
          Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Nuno Silva <nunojsilva@invalid.invalid> - 2026-10-29 10:22 +0000
            Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Jeff Layman <Jeff@invalid.invalid> - 2026-10-30 18:32 +0000
    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-10-28 16:55 +0000
    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> - 2026-10-28 17:13 +0000
      Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-29 21:40 -0400
        Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-30 00:07 -0400
          Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> - 2026-10-30 07:27 +0000
            Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-30 14:58 -0400
              Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? "Carlos E. R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-31 19:12 +0100
    Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Richmond <dnomhcir@gmx.com> - 2026-10-30 07:10 +0000
      Re: What do you prefer for reading & saving PDFs on Android? Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-30 15:11 -0400

Page 4 of 4 — ← Prev page 1 2 3 [4]

#156775

FromJeff Layman <Jeff@invalid.invalid>
Date2026-10-30 18:32 +0000
Message-ID<11c2nr2$gdsg$1@dont-email.me>
In reply to#156717
On 29/10/2026 10:22, Nuno Silva wrote:
> On 2026-10-29, Jeff Layman wrote:
> 
>> Coincidentally, a new update has just appeared for Falcon PDF. See
>> "All your docs in one place" at
>> <https://play.google.com/store/search?q=falcon+pdf+app&c=apps&hl=en>
>> (it's the "screenshot" of a cellphone. Just touch/click on the > and
>> it will move to that photo. It says it supports PDF, Word, ePub, and
>> 10+ formats).
>>
>> There is a paid version of Falcon, but the free version has no ads. I
>> find it hard to believe that the paid-for version covers the cost of
>> the free version, and without ads how is it financed?
> 
> I can't fathom why is this surprising or hard to believe in a world full
> of software developed without payment being required.
> 
> Sure, there's talk about some companies - especially among those
> developing commercial software - enjoying such programs, libraries,
> projects without trying to support their maintenance and/or
> development. But still, the world is full of such cases of free tools,
> and more notably free and open source software.
> 
> So, how is this hard to believe?

I see that there are limits on how much the free app can be used:
<https://falconpdf.com/docs/app/pdf-tools/usage-limits>. I guess that's 
how their economics work.

Not sure how good the latest updates are, but the May '26 one evidently 
messed up a pretty good product.
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.avrapps.pdfviewer&hl=en>

-- 
Jeff

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#156687

FromFrank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid>
Date2026-10-28 16:55 +0000
Message-ID<11btctu.m48.1@ID-201911.user.individual.net>
In reply to#156675
Maria Sophia wrote:
>
> Needed to have two toilet wax rings replaced so I received a PDF in
> Whatsapp on Android of the $750 estimate (I ended up doing it for $15). 
>  <https://i.postimg.cc/g2kQdrwY/toilet.jpg>
>
> My question is what free no registration Android app reads and saves PDF? 
> I rarely (actually almost never) deal with PDFs on Android. 
>
> But this time, I had to read it, pronto, in order to make a decision.
> So I had to do whatever was needed to read the quote emailed to me.

  WhatsApp can just invoke ('Open with') the bundled PDF viewers. For
your Samsung phone, you have a choice of four: OneDrive, (Google) Drive,
Microsoft 365 and Samsung's PDF reader. Given your concerns, the latter
is probably best for you. Samsung's PDF reader also has 'Save as' in its
three dots menu.

  So no need to install anything else.

[...]

> But what do you prefer for reading and saving PDFs on Android?

  I mostly use the (Google) Drive PDF viewer (no it doesn't upload,
unless you want to), but it doesn't have a 'Save as' (which can mostly
be worked around).

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#156688

FromAndy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk>
Date2026-10-28 17:13 +0000
Message-ID<nkeoqiF6cpoU1@mid.individual.net>
In reply to#156675
Maria Sophia wrote:

> My question is what free no registration Android app reads and saves PDF?
> I rarely (actually almost never) deal with PDFs on Android.
On Windows, I prefer sumatraPDF as a viewer (It does have annotation, 
but not form-filling or document editing) and I wish it had an android 
version, but no.

I've got something against javascript PDF viewers built-in to browsers, 
they used to be slow, I know that's no longer true, but I prefer an 
external program.

So MuPDF seems to have a similar approach, be quick and lightweight, 
which is all I'm likely to want to do on a phone/tablet.

I only use Acrobat when I have to ... I see it trip customer machines up 
too often, with its hooks into Explorer/Word/Outlook.

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#156750

FromMaria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com>
Date2026-10-29 21:40 -0400
Message-ID<11c0si2$304t$1@nnrp.usenet.blueworldhosting.com>
In reply to#156688
Andy Burns wrote:
>> My question is what free no registration Android app reads and saves PDF?
>> I rarely (actually almost never) deal with PDFs on Android.
> On Windows, I prefer sumatraPDF as a viewer (It does have annotation, 
> but not form-filling or document editing) and I wish it had an android 
> version, but no.
> 
> I've got something against javascript PDF viewers built-in to browsers, 
> they used to be slow, I know that's no longer true, but I prefer an 
> external program.
> 
> So MuPDF seems to have a similar approach, be quick and lightweight, 
> which is all I'm likely to want to do on a phone/tablet.
> 
> I only use Acrobat when I have to ... I see it trip customer machines up 
> too often, with its hooks into Explorer/Word/Outlook.

As I noted in the OP, I first tried the Adobe Acrobat Reader, but I was
appalled that it asked me to create an account just to read a PDF file.

Then I used the next on the list of very many PDF readers on my system.
And that worked. <https://i.postimg.cc/tRmWnpFP/whatsappshare.jpg>

It was just next on the list of the very many readers of PDF files.

But it sucked as a PDF reader 'cuz it was designed to add geolocation to
map PDFs, but it was "good enough" for me to create the JPEG of the PDF.
 <https://i.postimg.cc/g2kQdrwY/toilet.jpg>

Then, I tried a few of the PDF readers on my long list of PDF readers.
And they all sucked, in my humble opinion.

Plus, some of them wouldn't SAVE the PDF into the file storage so that I
could copy the saved PDF over to Android so that I could convert it to JPG.
(Which I only needed so that I could post the results as a JPG on this ng.)

Luckily, the UNIVERSAL solution I came up with was to add a "Save as" to
the "Share to", which I thank you (and others) for pointing out that
Android prefers "Open with" or "Share to" in order to process PDF
attachments.

That is, we can:
 1. Longpress the PDF attachment and "Open with" a PDF reader, or, 
 2. Longpress the PDF attachment and "Share to" a file saver.

If we wish to SAVE the PDF to open file storage, that PDF reader in the
"Open with" selection must have the ability to save, but most have that.

It's this new ability to "Share to" a "Save as" that is universally useful!
 <https://i.postimg.cc/B6ryMZpn/saveasfile.jpg>

That's a quantum leap in our capabilities becasue it allows us to do things
that OEMs don't want us to do (like save APKs from the Google Play Store).
-- 
Usenet is where kind-hearted well-educated people gather to share ideas.

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#156754

FromMaria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com>
Date2026-10-30 00:07 -0400
Message-ID<11c156u$2ids$1@nnrp.usenet.blueworldhosting.com>
In reply to#156750
Maria Sophia wrote:
>  1. Longpress the PDF attachment and "Open with" a PDF reader, or, 
>  2. Longpress the PDF attachment and "Share to" a file saver.

Hey Andy,

I trust you. Can you test a PDF attachment to WhatsApp for the team?

When I try to OpenWith a PDF attachment from WhatsApp, 0 browsers show up.
 <https://i.postimg.cc/tRmWnpFP/whatsappshare.jpg>

But I have a billion web browsers installed on Android.
So do you most likely.

Can you (or someone else reliable) test the solution that multiple people
proposed, which is open the PDF in a web browser from the WA OpenWith menu?

Do _you_ see any web browsers showing up in the WA PDF OpenWith menu?
I don't.

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#156759

FromAndy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk>
Date2026-10-30 07:27 +0000
Message-ID<nkiv6dFrapbU1@mid.individual.net>
In reply to#156754
Maria Sophia wrote:

> Can you test a PDF attachment to WhatsApp for the team?

I don't use WhatsApp.

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#156779

FromMaria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com>
Date2026-10-30 14:58 -0400
Message-ID<11c2pbt$1vfj$1@nnrp.usenet.blueworldhosting.com>
In reply to#156759
Andy Burns wrote:
>> Can you test a PDF attachment to WhatsApp for the team?
> 
> I don't use WhatsApp.

Isn't the Android sharesheet common across all apps (not just WhatsApp)?

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#156801

From"Carlos E. R." <robin_listas@es.invalid>
Date2026-10-31 19:12 +0100
Message-ID<nkmpclFftpsU2@mid.individual.net>
In reply to#156779
On 2026-10-30 19:58, Maria Sophia wrote:
> Andy Burns wrote:
>>> Can you test a PDF attachment to WhatsApp for the team?
>>
>> I don't use WhatsApp.
> 
> Isn't the Android sharesheet common across all apps (not just WhatsApp)?

No, it changes depending on what is the source type. For whatsap it is a 
pdf on some url.

-- 
Cheers,
        Carlos E.R.
        ES🇪🇸, EU🇪🇺.

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#156758

FromRichmond <dnomhcir@gmx.com>
Date2026-10-30 07:10 +0000
Message-ID<82h5i3d5oz.fsf@example.com>
In reply to#156675
Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> writes:


> But what do you prefer for reading and saving PDFs on Android?

You don't want to know.

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#156782

FromMaria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com>
Date2026-10-30 15:11 -0400
Message-ID<11c2q4p$fet$1@nnrp.usenet.blueworldhosting.com>
In reply to#156758
Richmond wrote:
>> But what do you prefer for reading and saving PDFs on Android?
> 
> You don't want to know.

That's not a bad observation when some people suggest to use a web browser
while others suggest a file explorer while others suggest a dedicated PDF
reader and when I test each suggestion, I find that I can't even see any
web browsers in the ShareTo sharesheet when I longpress a PDF in WhatsApp.

So it was doomed to "look" like that because the two questions are
completely different, and when paired with WhatsApp, a Venn Diagram mess.

Therefore... I openly and publicly admit it was a DUMB IDEA for me to mix 
 1. WhatsApp sharesheet/saveas/openwith
 2. With what is the best PDF reader
Simply because the 1st question already has IMMENSELY COMPLICATED answers.

I repeat: *I should not have conflated the two tasks.*

 a. Getting a PDF out of whatsapp turned out to have many solutions
 b. But one of which was to simply turn the ShareTo into a SaveAs
 c. But that surfaced the capriciousness of the Android sharesheet

So both halves of the question hid unknown complexities, such as:
 A. You can't share to a good PDF reader if it doesn't show up, and, 
 B. What shows up is capricious as hell by design (which is just nuts)

Luckily, there are "supposedly" solutions to the capriciousness.
    *Android's share menu could finally be more consistent in Android 14*
    <https://www.esper.io/blog/android-14-share-menu>
     "Android 14 is expected to bring more consistency to the share menu, 
      which has long frustrated users and developers with its unpredictable 
      behavior across apps. Google is working to give apps and users more 
      control over what appears in the sheet and in what order."

  *App Pinning inside the Sharesheet*
  <https://en.androidayuda.com/android/Tutorials/How-to-customize-the-sharing-menu-on-Android--fix-apps--organize-shortcuts--and-get-the-most-out-of-it-on-Samsung--Xiaomi--and-more./>

But neither of them worked for me on my Android 13 phone.

Sigh.
My bad. 

This thread was too complicated from the start to have clean answers.
I apologize. I was in a rush at the time. And made it too complicated.

I will strive not to make the question so complicated next time.

[toc] | [prev] | [standalone]

Page 4 of 4 — ← Prev page 1 2 3 [4]

Back to top | Article view | comp.mobile.android

csiph-web