Microsoft previews Office 2019 for Windows 10 business users

Although the new version of Microsoft's Office software suite isn't expected to be publicly available before the second half of 2018, the firm is offering a first look at Office 2019 for Windows 10 to businesses that are members of its evaluation program.

The Office package currently being tested includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, as well as Publisher, Access, Project, Visio and OneNote. The remaining programs (Exchange, SharePoint, Project Server and Skype for Business) will be rolled out later.

Office 2019 will notably do more to embrace touchscreen functionality, aimed evidently at tablet users, but also at users of the increasingly popular touchscreen or hybrid PCs. In PowerPoint, for example, improved inking tools will let users play with various effects, colors and line thicknesses. It will also be possible to reposition objects onscreen using a stylus. In this new version, PowerPoint also integrates icons and 3D images.

As for Excel, Microsoft promises new formulas, plus new types of graphs and charts. There are no major changes expected for Word, other than a new voice-to-text function and various accessibility improvements. This version of Office 2019 will only be compatible with Windows 10 PCs. A separate Mac version is due at a later date.