An official Microsoft Office suite for the iPad has long been the subject of hopeful rumors, but a leaked shot of the software in action on Apple’s tablet proves for the first time that it’s real, and that it is on its way to the App Store.
The photograph was obtained by The Daily, which claims to have spent some quality time with a working prototype of Microsoft Office for the iPad. The software is said to sport a metro user interface similar to that of Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system, and allows you to create, view, and edit Excel, Word, and PowerPoint documents:
Word, Excel and PowerPoint files can be created and edited locally and online. But it’s unclear if Microsoft will support other Office apps at launch or at all.
It’s hardly surprising that an official Office suite is on the way, after all, Microsoft has shown it is willing to develop for Apple’s devices several times in recent months, with the release of iOS apps like My Xbox LIVE and OneNote. And you can bet your bottom dollar this will be a huge success for the company.
But according to the same source that provided this app, Microsoft is not working on Office for Android.
The Daily says that an exact release date is unknown at this point, but that “the design team has since wrapped up the project” and it could be available in “the coming weeks.” With Microsoft attending Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next week, it’s possible the company could unveil the software then. That would explain why “product of Spain” is written on the side of the box on which the iPad in the image sits.
Let’s just hope it doesn’t feature that awful ribbon interface we got a glimpse of back in November.
[via The Verge]
