Microsoft needs Chrome OS customers operating Office internet apps, not Android apps

Starting September 18th, Microsoft will finish assist for the Office and Outlook Android apps on Chrome OS and begin pushing Chromebook customers to its internet apps as a substitute, in line with a statement it gave About Chromebooks. As just lately as July thirty first, Microsoft’s support documents advisable putting in the Android variations of Office, Outlook, OneNote, and OneDrive, however now those documents say that the apps are unsupported for Chrome OS customers.

As About Chromebooks’ Kevin Tofel factors out, although, the transfer to internet apps makes the offline scenario for Office customers extra sophisticated. While sure Office internet apps, like Outlook, have a devoted offline mode, Tofel stories not with the ability to open present paperwork utilizing Microsoft’s progressive internet app for Chrome OS whereas offline. While Chrome OS does offer some offline enhancing capabilities for Office information natively, it doesn’t provide the actual Office expertise like the Android apps did whereas disconnected from the web.

Microsoft wasn’t instantly accessible to reply questions on what offline performance the Office internet expertise for Chrome OS supplied, or whether or not it will be making enhancements earlier than the September switchover.

For those that are at all times on-line, although, the transfer from Android to internet app could not make an excessive amount of of a distinction. For essentially the most half, the net model of Office affords lots of the options that you simply’d want for primary phrase processing, spreadsheeting, and presentation making — although I’m actually not one to guage those that don’t desire internet apps.

Microsoft’s assertion to About Chromebooks doesn’t actually go into why the corporate is making the change, although it does say that it’ll let Chrome OS customers entry “additional and premium features.” (It’s price noting that Chrome OS customers may already use the Office internet apps in the event that they selected.) Tofel stories that this alteration doesn’t imply that Office for Android will probably be going away for telephone customers. We’ve reached out to Microsoft to substantiate this and can let you recognize if we hear again.

There is a few irony in Microsoft pushing Chromebook customers away from utilizing Android apps on their laptops, as Windows 11 can have assist for operating Android apps. That mentioned, Android apps’ performance on Chrome OS has lengthy been criticized, and even Google has changed a few of its personal apps with PWAs on the platform. Most PWAs are solely helpful when you have a reside web connection, however that’s not likely the case for apps like Office. Hopefully, Chromebook customers will get the choice for an offline expertise again after the swap.