14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has pledged to make its apps and services available on all platforms and devices, including the Office productivity suite, but as far as Chomebooks were concerned, only some were actually allowed to download it.
Basically, Google announced in 2016 that Android app support would be released for ChromeOS, which meant that all Chomebooks, no matter the manufacturer, were supposed to get a major boost in productivity with access to the vast collection of apps in the Google Play Store.
As part of the said strategy, Microsoft itself joined the fun and optimized its apps for Chromebooks, including the Office suite, but until recently, only a few devices could get it.
But as it turns out, Microsoft had a sudden change of mind recently and released the Office productivity suite for all Chromebooks in the Google Play store. AndroidCentral writes that all devices are now allowed to try out Microsoft Office using the Play Store listing, no matter who manufactured the device.
Office 365 subscription required to edit documents
What’s important to know, however, is that devices with screens larger than 10.1 inches need to be configured with an Office 365 subscription to be able to edit documents. This is a requirement that Microsoft has implemented on all platforms, making the Office suite just a suite of document viewers if such a subscription is not available.
Microsoft’s apps have experienced particular success in the Google Play Store, with the Word app itself being downloaded between 100 million and 500 million times. There are 1.4 million ratings in the Play Store, with an overall score of 4.5 stars and no less than 994,000 5-star reviews.
Microsoft Office is one of the apps that are getting monthly updates on all supported platforms thanks to an Insider program similar to the one of Windows 10. This way, users can try out new features before they are released to the production ring, with Microsoft also getting feedback in order to address found bugs early.