Introducing Office – Your new go-to mobile app for getting work done
February 19, 2020 Update: The Office app has now reached general availability and is free for anyone to download through the App Store for iOS and the Google Play Store for Android. Please read our latest post on the Microsoft 365 Blog for more information. Today we are excited to share a new vision for how people get work done on a phone – a new app that’s ambitious enough to simply be called Office. Download for Android (public preview) Update on iOS public preview: Per the terms of Apple’s TestFlight program, the public preview for iOS apps is restricted to a maximum capacity of 10,000 users. We saw extraordinarily strong interest in the Office app and reached the capacity limit for iOS within a few hours of today’s announcement. We are thrilled and flattered by the interest and look forward to reaching general availability of the app for everyone to use. The public preview for the Android version of the Office app is not subject to the same download limits and continues to be available for download. Vision for working on mobile devices We all rely on mobile devices more than ever for getting work done whether that’s at a job, at home, or at school. There are many great mobile productivity apps available such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint to help us do that, however we still believe an opportunity exists to create a more mobile-centric experience for these types of apps. The new Office mobile app represents our vision for what a productivity solution would look like if first built for mobile devices. In designing this new experience, we first considered how people’s expectations differ when using a phone versus a computer, so we set out to optimize for simplicity, efficiency, and common mobile needs. Next, we explored how to better incorporate the unique ways that people input data and create content on a mobile device – essentially turning the phone form factor from a liability for doing work into an asset. Finally, we needed to ensure that this app met the high expectations people already have for Office solutions. This solution should feel familiar to the people that know and rely on them today and instill a sense of confidence that they can accomplish their work with the high degree of quality and security that they have come to know. A new mobile productivity experience We are excited to introduce to our solution to this endeavor. The Office app provides a simple, integrated experience that puts the tools you need for working on a mobile device at the forefront of the experience. We started by combining the existing Word, Excel, and PowerPoint mobile apps into a single app. Doing so brings all of your Office documents together in one place, reduces the need to switch between multiple apps, and significantly reduces the amount of space used on your phone compared to multiple installed apps. We then added new capabilities that harness the strengths of mobile devices, such as the camera, to enable you to create content in uniquely mobile ways. Finally, we added a new Actions Pane that helps you accomplish many of the common mobile tasks you need to do all from one place. Whether using it for personal or professional reasons, Office is designed to be your go-to app for getting work done on a mobile device. Let’s take a closer look at what makes it different: Simple, integrated experience Word, Excel, and PowerPoint all in one app with all of the mobile features you already know and use. Easily get to recent and recommended documents stored in the cloud or on your device, or search for documents across your organization if using a work account. Easy access to Sticky Notes to jot down quick reminders and ideas. Create content in uniquely mobile ways Snap a picture of a document and turn it into an editable Word file with the press of a button. Transform a picture of a table into an Excel spreadsheet so you can work with the data. Let PowerPoint help you design a presentation by simply selecting the pictures you want to use from your phone. Create automatically enhanced digital images of whiteboards and documents with Office Lens features integrated into the app. A new Actions pane for common tasks you may encounter on a mobile device Create PDFs with your camera, using photos on your device, or from Office documents. Sign PDFs by simply using your finger. Scan QR codes to open files and links. Easily transfer files between your phone and computer or share instantly with nearby mobile devices. Now available in public preview The Office mobile app is available in public preview starting today for Android and iOS*. It is super easy to get started with the app – anyone can download and use it for free and we don’t require a sign-in to start using it. However, logging in with a work, school, or personal Microsoft Account gives you access to your files stored in the cloud, and you can sign in with more than one account to make it easy to get to all of your documents in one place. The app is currently available only on phones, although we will bring this experience to tablets as well. Since this is a public preview, we are very interested in hearing from you about what you like, don’t like, or would like to see in the app so we encourage you to provide feedback through the “Help & Feedback” tool under Settings. We continue to work hard on making the app an even more powerful tool for getting work done, so keep an eye out for more to come with Office. We know many people are probably wondering, what does this mean for the current mobile apps? In short, we will continue to support and invest in the existing Word, Excel, and PowerPoint mobile apps. We are proud that millions of people use and depend on these apps every day and we believe everyone should decide which experience works best for them on their phones. However, we do encourage everyone to give the new Office app a try – we think it will change your expectations for what you think a mobile productivity experience should be. No other app combines the simplicity, efficiency, and capability for getting work done on a phone quite like Office. Get started now on Android and stayed tuned for further updates on availability for iOS*! * Please note: Per the terms of Apple’s TestFlight program, the public preview is capped at 10,000 users. We reached this limit on the first day of availability and the public preview for iOS is no longer available to new users.Add and Explore Office Add-ins easily with our new entry point
We’re excited to announce that a more easy-to-access entry point for Office Add-ins is now available online. By accessing the new entry point in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, you’ll have an upgraded experience without worrying about managing all your add-ins or choosing the fit right add-in among the thousands available in AppSource and the Office marketplace.Office Apps for Windows 10 Mobile: End of Support for Windows Phones
The Office apps for phones using Windows 10 Mobile – Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote -- will reach end of support on January 12, 2021. On that date, app users will no longer receive security updates, non-security hotfixes, free assisted support options or online technical content updates from Microsoft. This decision follows the earlier announcement that support for Windows 10 Mobile ends on December 10, 2019. Microsoft remains committed to providing a great Office experience on phones for consumer, commercial, education, and government users through the iOS and Android apps which continue to be supported. You can get the Office iOS and Android apps through the app stores for those platforms. What does end of support mean? The mobile apps for Office are governed by Microsoft's Modern Lifecycle Policy. Microsoft provides bug fixes and security fixes to support the product experience through the end of this lifecycle, known as the product's end of support. On January 12, 2021, you will no longer be able to install these Office apps on phones using Windows 10 Mobile and Microsoft will no longer provide the following support: Technical support for issues Bug fixes for issues that are discovered Security fixes for vulnerabilities that are discovered. What are my options? If you already have the apps installed before the end of support date, the apps will continue to work. However, because of the lack of security updates, we strongly recommend that if you wish to use Office on a phone you transition to the latest Microsoft Office apps on an iOS or Android phone. Not only will you find Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote apps in the iOS and Android app stores, you will also find new innovations such as the Office app which provides a simple, integrated experience with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint all in one app with all the mobile features you already know and use.Office 2019 for Mac Preview is ready for commercial customers
Today’s post was authored by Jared Spataro, Corporate Vice President for Office. Today we’re pleased to announce the commercial preview of Office 2019 for Mac – including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook andOneNote. Office 2019 for Mac is the next perpetual update to Office on Mac and is set to ship alongside Office 2019 for Windows in the second half of 2018. Office 365 ProPlus delivers the most productive and most secure Office experience – with the lowest TCO for deployment and management. But for customers who aren’t yet ready to move to the cloud, Office 2019 for Mac provides an update to the perpetual apps with new features for both end users and IT. Office 2019 for Mac delivers new features to help end users create amazing content in less time. Updates include the roaming pencil case and ribbon customizations across Office apps; focus mode in Word; Morph transitions, in-click sequence, and 4k video export in PowerPoint; new charts and functions in Excel; and focused inbox in Outlook. These features are already included in Office 365 ProPlus but are not available in Office for Mac 2016. For a longer list of the end-user features in Office 2019 for Mac, see theFAQ. Office 2019 for Mac also includes features for IT that will helpsimplify deployment and management. Command-line tools will allow IT admins to centrally control how and when Office updates are applied to users' devices, and support for industry-standard MDMpolicies andpreferences will give IT the power to enforce organization-wide security policies, including preferences for Visual Basic macros and app settings. Recent integration with Jamf Pro will add additional control and make it easier than ever to manage the velocity of Office updates across devices. Office 365 ProPlus delivers continuous cloud-powered innovation for increased productivity, better security, and the lowest TCO. But we recognize that for many customers, moving to the cloud is a journey with many considerations along the way. Office 2019 for Mac will be a valuable upgrade for customers who feel they need to keep some or all of their apps on-premises. To join Office 2019 for Mac preview, sign uphere.
