When it comes to productivity tools for the workplace, Microsoft Office and the other programs in the Microsoft 365 package continue to set the bar. Google has taken note of this as well and wants to make sure that ChromeOS users may more readily access Microsoft software.
Over the years, Google has been providing its own hardware and software ecosystem centered around forming a cloud operating system ChromeOS and the related Chromebooks and Chromeboxes.
Of course, this also applies to Google Docs and other Office applications, but Microsoft 365 with its online versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other Office programs is still likely to be the market leader in this regard.
However, to meet its competitors in this lineup, Google is now integrating Microsoft services into its cloud operating system so that more customers can utilize Chromebooks with ChromeOS. A Google employee said in a blog post that Word, PowerPoint, and Excel can already be used under ChromeOS as PWAs, but support needs to be increased.
Google plans to roll out the new setup experience for installing Microsoft 365 web apps and OneDrive on ChromeOS throughout the year. Now, users would find it considerably simpler to utilize ChromeOS in conjunction with Microsoft’s Office programs and cloud storage as a result.
The Files app in the Microsoft 365 app will always open with the OneDrive content automatically displayed as part of the integration of OneDrive.
As it stands now, Google’s exact plans for the new integration of Microsoft services into ChromeOS are yet unknown, the blog post stated that full details would be released in the coming months. As per usual, there should be a test of ChromeOS in the Dev and Beta channels first. Thus, stay tuned.
