Microsoft Office suite for iOS gets Apple Pencil and 3D Touch support

If you are interested in getting involved with the Office Insider program just head over to the main site and follow the steps based on the system you want to get early release builds on. Windows Insiders are testing possible new Windows 10 features that may be multiple months away from general availability. But with the launch of the iPad Pro, Redmond has surprisingly become even more aggressive in pushing Office, especially Office 365, to Apple users, both on iOS and on the Mac. Microsoft offers a similar program, First Release, for users running the commercial version of Office 365.

However, Microsoft has made the inking capability one of the features that require an Office 365 subscription to unlock.

The new apps will also be able to surface Office documents in Spotlight search results, and selected fonts can be downloaded as needed as opposed to all fonts being stored locally in their respective apps. While you can use a finger to doodle directly on the screen, the update recognizes the Apple Pencil for more accurate scribbling. There’s a new feature called ink to shape that automatically will convert the sorry excuse for a circle (or box or arrow or line) that you drew into a flawless vector that you can then manipulate appropriately. Office for iPad and iPad Pro users can get the inking functionality today, January 21, in the updated versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote.

PowerPoint Mobile for Windows will get real-time co-authoring support, allowing users to view changes to files as they occur. Real-time presence is also being introduced to PowerPoint 2016 on Windows desktop, which will let users see who else is working on a document and where. You can grab the new PowerPoint update, which also adds 3D Touch support and font downloading, directly from Apple’s App Store.

“Given the breadth of devices and platforms on which Office is available, these new features will be rolling out across platforms over time as part of the regular updates available from Office 365”, said Kirk Koenigsbauer, corporate vice president for Microsoft’s Office team, in a blog post.