Microsoft Office is the most utilized productivity suite in the world; and, there are several reasons why. One of the most cited is that they routinely update the applications with new and innovative features. Office 2019 has been out for just under a year and today, we’ll talk about the biggest improvements Microsoft has made within their signature productivity suite. 

To begin, Office 2019 features the following apps:

• Outlook
• Word
• Excel
• PowerPoint

Let’s take a look at what has changed inside each of these applications.

Outlook

Outlook is Microsoft’s personal information manager. Most people use it predominantly as an email application, but it also offers users a dedicated calendar, task and contact management, and more. Changes in Outlook 2019 include:

• One-click fixes for accessibility issues - Enhanced accessibility options are updated to new international standards.
• Focused inbox - Outlook now features more options to keep you focused on the information you need and less on the glut of email that you may get. 
• Outlook reads your emails to you - Outlook now offers a text to voice option that will read your emails to you. 

Word

Microsoft Word is the Office suite’s legendary word processor. Word 2016 was the standard for several years, and now with Word 2019, users are starting to see more dynamic collaboration options. Some changes to Word 2019 include: 

• Real time collaboration - Work side-by-side with others to collaborate on documents in real time.  
• Integrated translation - Microsoft translator gives workers the ability to translate words, phrases, and sentences in many languages.
• Enhanced reading options - Instead of straining your eyes, choose options to help make it easier on them, including page color, column width, text spacing, or have Word read your document to you.
• Easier navigation - You can now flip though documents quickly with side-by-side view.

Excel

Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet program bundled with Microsoft Office. The new version of Excel presents users a whole slew of new and interesting features, many of which improve its ability to sufficiently act as a database. Here are a few of the new features:

• New Charts - Users can now create a series of new charts, including map charts, funnel charts, and more. 
• Precision selecting - Now users can deselect cells that aren’t relevant to their query without having to frustratingly start over.  
• New and improved connectors - Now there are integrations that allow Excel to be front and center on any of your organization’s analytics initiatives. 

PowerPoint

Those that rely on PowerPoint, know just how useful the presentation software can be. PowerPoint 2019 features these improvements to an already industry-leading software:

• Zoom for PowerPoint - Provides custom navigation inside a presentation for more presenter-friendly interaction.
• SVG image compatibility - You can now insert and edit scalable vector graphics (SVG) images for clearer, more defined imagery. 
• Export to 4K - Now you can export your presentation to 4K format, slightly better than Ultra High Definition. 

Other software

Some versions of Office 2019 also come with the improved Microsoft Teams interface, SharePoint, and more. Better yet, the extremely popular Microsoft Office 365 now utilizes Office 2019 functionality to improve that product. 

Microsoft lists OneNote as a part of their Microsoft Office platform, but the software giant is starting to move away from OneNote as a part of the productivity suite, instead making it an integral part of the Windows 10 experience. 

If you would like to talk about what Microsoft products are right for your business and/or personal computing needs, the IT professionals at Network Synergy are available to answer your questions and give you suggestions. To speak to one of our certified consultants call us today at (203) 261-2201.