After a year of testing, Microsoft Office is finally available in all Chromebooks.
It has been a long wait for Office applications to be universally available in all Chromebooks. As Chrome Unboxed notes, it took its sweet time -- occasionally appearing on some, but never going all the way, until now.
Microsoft never offered any explanation as to why some of its applications would work perfectly well on certain Chrome devices, and would not work at all on others. Just as its latest and highly anticipated development did not come with any official announcement.
After receiving reports that Microsoft Office has been popping up on various Chromebooks, Chrome Unboxed took it upon itself to test out each and every Chrome OS it currently has, and found that all these -- Samsung Chromebook Pro, Pixelbook, Acer Chromebook 15 and Acer C771 -- are showing the Microsoft Office app on the Play Store, ready for download.
This will be an Android version of the Office, basically the same one seen on an Android tablet. It is free to access for anyone using a Chromebook that has a 10.1-inch display or smaller, just like the Asus Chromebook Flip. Those with larger devices will need an Office 365 subscription, following a Microsoft rule across Windows, iOS, and Android hardware on devices bigger than 10.1 inches.
Microsoft Office is a highly useful tool in both offices and schools. The lack of it in some devices may have been the only hindrance for some users to purchase the highly efficient and much cheaper Mac alternative.
This new development on Chromebooks everywhere may very well further boost the already successful sales for the Google device. Earlier this year, it was reported that Chromebooks helped boost the PC market, which recorded its first growth in the past five years. It was a tiny increase of 0.6 percent, but a highly needed one nonetheless.
