OneNote and Lync to be released as Windows 8 apps, full Office 2013 suite preinstalled on Windows RT
After months of speculation, Microsoft has finally unveiled the next generation of its popular Office suite. The applications included with Office 2013 have been updated with a wide variety of features such as SkyDrive integration, full screen mode, roaming profiles, and much more, as well as a new flatter Metro-style interface which evokes memories of Zune. Of course, here at Pocketables, we like to focus on mobile devices and apps. The most important aspect of today’s announcement – at least, for our readers – is how Office 2013 will work on Microsoft’s upcoming Windows 8 tablets, like the Surface.
Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 will, as previously announced, come preinstalled on all Windows RT devices. Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote have all been optimized for touch. The latter even includes a new radial menu for easy access to OneNote’s features. Handwriting will be supported with a stylus, and all Office applications will be able to automatically convert handwriting to text. This, however, is just scratching the surface.
OneNote and Lync will also be released as full Metro-style Windows 8 apps in the near future. Microsoft’s documentation makes it sound as if these apps are already available on the Windows Store, but that is not yet the case. You can, however, download the Office 2013 Customer Preview for Intel-based devices today.
[Microsoft PressPass]
