Microsoft launches Office Insider for Mac users, promising early updates for enthusiasts

By Justin Pot January 22, 2016

microsoft adds google calendar contacts support office 2016 for mac office2016formac — Microsoft

Hey, Mac Users! Microsoft is inviting you to the early-update Office party.

Redmond has announced that Office 365 subscribers can now opt into Microsoft Office Insider on their Macs, giving them early access to new features for Word, Excel, Powerpoint, OneNote, and Outlook for Mac.

“Now, Mac users can also get early access to Office innovations,” Microsoft VP Kirk Koenigsbauer announced in a blog post. “It’s simple to get started. Just opt-in to the Office Insider build from the Microsoft Auto Update (MAU) tool on your Mac.”

To find the Auto Update tool, just open any Office 2016 app on your Mac, then click “Help” in the Menubar followed by “Check For Updates”. There should be a checkbox for enabling Office Insider. Though the announcement only mentions Office 365 subscribers, my one-off purchase of Office 2016 for Mac also offers the setting.

The blog post did not announce any upcoming features for Mac users specifically, and enabling the service right now does not prompt any updates. So there’s nothing new for Mac users to play with yet, and Microsoft hasn’t announced when that might change.

But new features are coming to other Apple platforms, particularly the iPad and iPad Pro. If you own an Apple Pencil, there’s an entirely new “Draw” tab in the Office Ribbon, which gives you more control while drawing over documents. There’s also support for shape recognition — quickly sketching a circle can now result in a perfectly symmetrical circle, for example.

Windows users, meanwhile, will soon be able to see real-time edits made my collaborators in PowerPoint 2016 for Windows tablets. Android users will have access to the auto-save and co-authoring features that iOS users have been enjoying.

Basically, Microsoft is rolling out new features to different platforms at varying rates — all part of their plan to become a more cross-platform company. Offering the Office Insider Feature for Mac users means Office 2016 for Mac won’t stagnate the way previous Office offerings did. Turn this feature on now if you want to find out what Microsoft’s plans are.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Justin's always had a passion for trying out new software, asking questions, and explaining things – tech journalism is the…

Computing

How much is Microsoft Office? 

The Microsoft Office app on PC.

Microsoft Office is one of the world’s most popular office suites, providing applications that enable you to create documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and databases, as well as manage your email. The suite can consist of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Publisher, and Access, depending on the version you select. Additional services such as OneDrive cloud storage space are also included with specific bundles. Let’s take a look at how much Microsoft Office will cost depending on your needs.
If you want Microsoft Office for free
Use Office.com
You’re not going to receive the best Microsoft Office experience without the company’s premium, feature-packed desktop applications and included services. Still, if you need a free option, you can turn to Office.com. Online applications feature more limited versions of Microsoft Word for document writing, Excel for spreadsheets, and PowerPoint for presentations. There is no online access included for more advanced applications such as Publisher or Access -- additionally, you are limited to OneDrive’s free storage tier.

While you may be able to get by with the free edition, some users will find themselves confined by the web version’s limited capabilities. For more information on the full-featured versions of Office for Mac and PC, as well as their mobile counterparts for iOS and Android, keep reading.
Grab Office free as a student
Are you currently a student? If you have a valid school email address, you can obtain a completely free version of Microsoft Office 365. Known as Office 365 Education, the bundle includes Word for document writing, Excel for spreadsheets, PowerPoint for presentations, and OneNote for note-taking. Students even receive free access to Microsoft Teams for easy collaboration with other students when working on projects. As Microsoft says, "It's not a trial -- so get started today."
If you are using Microsoft Office at home

Computing

Microsoft is phasing out the default Office font. Here’s what could replace it

MS Office Online screenshot of Word document

Microsoft needs your help to shape the future of its Office suite of products. Five new default fonts are in the works for Microsoft 365 -- which covers Word, Excel, and PowerPoint -- and Microsoft is seeking out feedback for which one is best.

The five new potential default font families are now available as a download for testing and have various themes. The list includes fonts with the unique names of Tenorite, Bierstadt, Skeena, Seaford, and Grandview. There's a separate artist behind each one, and the designs span different geometric, human, and industrial shapes, according to Microsoft.

Computing

The Mac Pro promised modularity at launch. Two years later, has it delivered?

Tim Cook presenting the Mac Pro on stage at WWDC in 2019.

The Mac Pro redesign of 2019 was one of the biggest overhauls of an Apple product since -- well, ever. Nothing was left untouched, from the exterior design to the internal components. Yet nothing made Mac enthusiasts salivate more than Apple’s promise of extensive modularity.

Two years later, how well has that promise been realized? Looking at the selection of what Apple offers today, you won't find much beyond the components and modules that were initially launched in 2019. On the surface, that calls into question how serious Apple has been about following through with its promise.