14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft says it’s been receiving questions about what Office 365 can offer to Apple users, and the company is now pleased to offer a quick and definitive answer: “a lot!”
MS Office 365 offers cloud-based Exchange, Lync Online and SharePoint support.
According to Andrew Kisslo, group manager of Office 365, users get “a phenomenal experience” across their Apple devices and services, including Macintosh computers, as well as Safari on both Mac and iPhone, “so they can easily work with co-workers on PC’s.”
One of the primary benefits of using MS Office 365 is Email with Exchange Online, which lets users employ Outlook for Mac 2011 and connect to the cloud to get “rich messaging features, the ability to check calendar free/busy status, and manage task and contacts,” and more, according to Andrew.
Those using Word for Mac 2011, PowerPoint for Mac 2011 and Excel for Mac 2011 can open, save and upload files to and from SharePoint Online as well as co-author from within the apps via the same service.
Safari users can get straight to email, calendar, tasks and contacts directly from any version of the browser that’s above 3.0, all using Outlook Web Access. Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard is also required (Tiger not supported).
However, to make edits from SharePoint online or view a PowerPoint Broadcast, a newer version of Safari (4.x) will be required.
Rounding up the list of features available to desktop users is the ability to carry out online meetings via the Lync Web App. Users of Communicator for Mac 2011 will not be able to connect to Lync Online through Office 365 for the time being.
On the iPhone, Office 365 users get a mobile inbox with Exchange Active Sync, while IT departments can even set mobile policies like Pin Lock, Remote Wipe and more. Also on the iPhone, customers can access documents and view attachments.