Microsoft today blogged about their strategy for Skydrive and how its going to fit in with Office 2013. Skydrive is already the backbone for many MS services, everything from Xbox Cloud-saved games to providing a space to upload photos when sending from Hotmail. In this little preview, we get a look at how Office may look on WP8, complete with new style Windows logo.
This year will see Office 2013 released, as long as you're signed into your PC with your Live ID it will automatically save your documents to Skydrive as the default option. The post then goes on talk about the new feature of Office 2013 where it will remember the exact paragraph you were last reading so that when you pick up your next device you’ll be right where you left off.
Whilst a mockup - its showing off that new Windows Logo
The post goes on to state that those features will extend to the mobile device also. Synchronised reading position for a document being worked on certainly sounds very useful. What more can we speculate will be rolled into Windows Phone 8? If WP8 is going to be much more business friendly than Windows Phone 7 then I am expecting a good deal of features baked in.
We know that Skype is going to be first class citizen with Office 2013 but I would expect to see Lync thrown in here for good measure. If they are talking about synced reading views then I would expect the same form of touch based reading experience that is offered in Office 2013. Currently Windows Phone already has some nice touches in the Office Hub, recent documents already exists but Office 2013 takes that slightly further by showing documents from all applications the the various storage locations you have been using.
What else might we expect? Well Word 2013 can now edit PDF documents. Perhaps WP8 will be able to dispense with a PDF viewer completely in favour of Word in reading mode. Presence is a huge thing in the corporate world so seeing who’s online for live document collaboration or chat using Lync or Skype? I don’t see why the already excellent Windows Phone version of Office can’t go on to be a real star in the Windows 8 story.
I’d love to know what you would like to see in Office 2013 on Windows Phone 8.
Source: Microsoft
Reader comments
Windows Phone 8 – Office 2013 spotted in mockup
When I installed the preview there was most certainly a lync element installed, I had to approve it through my virus software. Things are getting really exciting now, the vision so many of us saw with WP7 is just around the corner with WP8! :-)
So awesome metro rules
"This year will see Office 2013 released..."
You might want to reward that. WinRT and WP8 this year, x86 next year, right?
Sure, thanks for noticing that, if MS were going ahead as expected with Surface WinRT tablet launch this year then I would class that as availability. There is some talk Office 2013 may not be generally available until next year. I have not seen anything hard on that so far. My understanding is MS are launching all three at the same time.
Wait... then why are they calling it 2013? lol
That happens with everything. Idk why though. I guess it's meant to say, "this is for the coming year" or something.
It actually says 2015 when you install it.
I think this is getting confused. I haven't installed it yet but it should be Office 2013 aka Office 15 (as in version 15). Either one is acceptable but office 2015 should not be. Unless I've missed something.
Pretty sure I saw 2015, maybe it was just 15...
Looks like the 2nd page of the Office app on that shot is "places" which replaces the current "locations".
phone (On device)
enterprise (Sharepoint server)
Skydrive
Office 365
Not much to see here, just some alterations of names and such, but it's definately laid out differently than the current version of the Office Hub. Hope to see some added features in each of the apps, that would be nice.
I desperately need the ability to view handwritten notes in OneNote from Office on Windows Phone. Right now, it just displays as a crossed out document, which makes it completely useless to me; 90% of my notes are handwritten from my tablet.
I've never understood why people say that the current version of Office for WP is great. Documents to go on my old windows mobile phone was better. It makes me crazy that i can't view a Word doc in it's proper format on a Windows Phone. I want to be able to at least preview a document as it will appear to a client when printed on 8.5x11 paper. Picsel used to do that on it's windows mobile software years ago. I want way more editing/formatting ability. Right now, it's not so much a word processor as a text editor.
You're correct. For being the appointed Office phone, it is severely lacking. iWork for iOS is actually better.
Nor I. I find that I do all my Office editing (Word and Excel) using Documents to Go on my iPhone 4 (using Dropbox until SkyDrive works with it) rather than Office on my Nokia 900. Some of my spreadsheets can't be edited in Office on my Nokia but no trouble on the iPhone with the DataViz product. And the active cell is ALWAYS A1 in Office rather than where it was saved (e.g. A6849). D2G opens the file with the correct active cell highlighted and can be edited. Really hope the new Office on WP is what some are saying it is.
Hmm no more relying on inept Adobe
This should come with 7.8...
What I would like to see added in windows phone 8 office:
1. support for bluetooth keyboard
2. Feature fir adding websnippits and pictures in word documents
3. few font options
4. a few document styling options
5. feaure for adding simple tables
6. Feature page in lanscape orientation
7. bullet lists
8. option to save documents in 2003-2007 format (the whole world doesnt catch up quickly to new document formats.).
Bullet lists in word please! Having to import those from OneNote is getting annoying.
I really wish if existing version of office on WP7.5 can be replaced by this in 7.8 :D
Thank god something better is coming. I'm sorry but the current office in WP sucks to me. Pocket office on my windows mobile 5 phone has more features. I don't care if they hide them (reasonably) as long as the features are there. At least let me make and customize some decent charts in excel. Let me insert saved pictures or even better the option to copy pictures from a website to the clipboard and insert it directly. Let me move and insert stuff in powerpoint. I think it's sad when I have to take out my winmo5 phone to edit an excel doc so that I can email it to myself so I can have the the more advanced charts on my wp7. I'm no WP hater, far from it, but this is honestly my only gripe with WP and its a huge one. [RAGE ENDED] :)