Microsoft Office Universal apps preview for mobile due at the end of April

Office apps for Windows 10 for phones

Alongside Windows 10, Microsoft is also creating the next version of Office, but unlike previous version, the company will offer two versions: Office Universal and Office Desktop.

The Office Universal apps is the touch-friendly version of Office apps, which include Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and Outlook, and they will run on Windows 10 desktops, tablets, and phones. While the software giant has already published an early version of these apps for Windows 10 Technical Preview, the company says that it’s ready to offer a test version of the same apps for Windows 10 for phones and announced that they will be available at the end of April.

The Universal Office apps are designed for mobile productivity, where sophisticated features are not required. The apps will offer a touch-first experience for tablet and phones and optimized for viewing, quick edits, notes and mark-up. On phones, the apps adapt to the smaller form factor. Commands and controls are moved to the bottom of the screen, which makes it a lot easier to work with documents with one hand.

The Office Desktop apps is what Microsoft describes as the full version of the suite for Windows and Mac computers. The apps are more powerful than the Universal apps and they pack many sophisticated features to the work done right.

Office 2016 for the desktop will offer professional content creation, easy collaboration, pixel-perfect layout and deep analysis, and they are designed to work best with the keyboard and mouse.

Microsoft shares some of the new features for Office 2016 Desktop edition. The new version of the suite will include a new modern design that will aligned all the Office products across platform and devices. There will be a much easier to work with files in the cloud, and Outlook will make it even easier to attach files from OneDrive and automatically configure permission for the recipients. Office will also learn as you work with the apps to help you get the work done faster, and Tell Me — the new search tool — will be available in Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.

For businesses, Office 2016 for desktops will include new enhancements in Excel. New data visualization will make sophisticated analysis faster and easier, and Power Query will be built into Excel.

Enterprises will enjoy the new improved controls and information management. Word, Excel and PowerPoint will include new Data Loss Protection (DLP) feature to manage sensitive data like credit cards and social security numbers. Improved click-to-run deployment and new integration with Microsoft SCCM and Azure Active Directory will give organizations more control for managing Office apps across devices.

Microsoft also says that Office Universal apps will be part of the mobile version of Windows 10, which indicates that we may see a new build for mobile devices at the end of April as well. However, the software giant isn’t specifying if users will get the apps via an update or via a new build, but the company made it sound like it will release a new build bundled with the new Office apps.

Source Microsoft

About the author

Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 14 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 20 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me.