Microsoft has announced the launch of Office 2019. It will be available as a one-time purchase app suite for the conventional users of the software. While the Office 365 productivity subscriptions are still available and the company is pushing hard for sign-ups, people seem to be more excited for the Office 2019 option.
It is set to be released in the latter half of 2018 with previews scheduled to be made available mid-year. Office 2019 suite will include the standard versions apps, including Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook and other server apps like SharePoint, Exchange and Skype for Business. In all probability, Microsoft will provide different versions of Office 2019 especially for Apple users, just like it did with Office 2011 and 2016. However, no confirmation on the matter has come in from Microsoft.
Customers will have to pay a one-time fee instead of a recurring subscription, and the company is calling the new software version a suite of “perpetual” apps. The software will add multiple new characteristics for the users, including improved inking features like pressure sensitivity, ink replay and tilt effects. The release will also bring server enhancements such as updates to IT manageability, voice, usability and security.
Microsoft said, “New formulas and charts will make data analysis for Excel more powerful. Visual animation features like Morph and Zoom will add polish to PowerPoint presentations.”
Microsoft has also rolled out a feature on its Teams service that will let guest access to all the Office 365 education and commercial customers, earlier this month. Users will be able to add people from outside of the workplace to the team to participate in meetings, join in chats and collaborate on documents etc. through this new feature.
Conventional users would prefer to use the software version instead of joining the cloud which is Office 365 and pay the one-time fee instead of the recurring charges. However, many features included in the Office are designed for a particular set of users which remain unused for the others. For instance, if all your work is with Word you will be paying needlessly for the other apps. So, there isn’t a right answer. If you want to be regularly be updated on the fresh features of MS Office, you ought to subscribe to Office 365 but if you think the core Office apps will be sufficient for you, go for Office 2019.
