Microsoft has finally caught on with its latest Office version for Mac users as the all-new Office 2016 for Mac has just been rolled out for testers to download.
Five years after the Office 2011 version was released, the tech giant has now made the new software version available at the official Office.com preview site, and can be tested alongside its 2011 counterpart.
Microsoft made updates for the OneNote as well as the Outlook, which is only available in limited preview form.
The company will also put forward the latest public previews of these apps along with the first previews of the 2016 versions of Word, PowerPoint and Excel. All in all, these five apps can be downloaded by users who have updated to Yosemite (Mac OS 10.10).
According to Microsoft, regular updates will be made available for the preview and testers will be notified through the Office for Mac Auto-Update tool. After being posted, each new preview build will only have 60 days before it expires.
The final preview build will continue to run for about a month after Office 2016 for Mac is made available to the general public, particularly this summer. If Microsoft pushes through with the final version's rollout on summer, the Office 2016 for Mac will be released a few months.
As the new Windows version is currently being subjected to private testing, Microsoft promised to announce more details soon about the Office 2016 for Windows.
According to the company, its priority for Office 2016 for Mac is to incorporate elements that are similar to those of the Office for Windows while retaining the design and style that makes the suite look appropriate for the Mac OS X.
The update version for Mac comes with a new Ribbon that resembles that of the Office for Windows in terms of formatting and arrangement. The suite offers full support for retina displays and is designed to be 'cloud connected', thereby having close connections with OneDrive, OneDrive for Business, SharePoint and Office 365.
In addition, the Office 2016 for Mac prompts users to simply sign in with their credentials in the Office sign-in page which will enable them to access files across all their devices that have the Office software.
With this newest version, Word 2016 for Mac now comes with threaded comments to enhance coauthoring while the PowerPoint 2016 for Mac adds in a presenter view similar to that of the PowerPoint for iOS. For Excel 2016 users, new keyboard shortcuts that are similar to those of Office for Windows are now supported.
For those with an Office 365 subscription that supports Office suite apps' downloadable versions, they can now have the Office 2016 for Mac as soon it is rolled out- free of charge.
However, Microsoft is yet to announce the Office 2016 for Mac pricing for users without an Office 365 subscription.
