During Apple's MacBook Pro keynote last October, Apple briefly mentioned that Microsoft was working on introducing support for the new Touch Bar across its suite of Office applications.

While Microsoft has yet to officially roll out the support, Office users can opt to test the new Touch Bar features by becoming an "Office Insider", which is basically a public beta program.

f1477591830
In Word, Touch Bar users will be able to activate the distraction-free Focus Mode to remove the Ribbon, and access text formatting and font style options.

In PowerPoint, the Touch Bar will show a graphical overview of all slides in a deck, and offer the ability to reorder slides. Excel is set to get the most useful Touch Bar features though, bringing recently used functions, color cells, and chart options to the MacBook's OLED strip.

Lastly, Outlook brings a today view to the Touch Bar, allowing users to see calendar appointments for the day, while recently used documents will display when composing emails, for quickly attaching files. Skype call functions are also set to be available from the Bar.

Office users interested in testing the Touch Bar functions in the beta program – along with any attendant bugs/issues – can sign up to become an "Office Insider" here.

(via The Verge.)

Top Rated Comments

coolbreeze Avatar
115 months ago
Finally a use for it. Nice.
[doublepost=1486556345][/doublepost]
Microsoft - The company that gives more attention to the competitors OS than their own,
Yeah we are all waiting on Surface touch bar support. :rolleyes:
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
smacrumon Avatar
115 months ago
Pretty strange how this Microsoft support wasn't available at launch time. I would have thought Apple was more organized with their large partners.

Honestly, I'm still not convinced about the touch bar. Still gimmick in my opinion. Seems an interface that is a not as intuitive compared to direct input through touch on screen.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dreamlikestate Avatar
115 months ago
I just wonder how many years will it take for Apple to acknowledge they failed and ditch that ugly touch bar for good.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GB148 Avatar
115 months ago
I hope that was a figure of speech and not an attempt to undermine any credibility you spent an essay building.
It wasn't a shot at you personally if that's what you're asking. I think there are a lot of people who would agree that Apple has gone from making some professional level products, to making some prosumer level products, to mass marketing average stuff that isn't cutting edge in any way, other than cost. And I think Apple now designs products around what young kids who use their computers to watch Youtube might like. I personally don't find the need for dongles to be as annoying as I thought it would be, as the thinness and weight offset the dongle issue. But the huge trackpad and touchbar seem to be gimmicks and not as effective as the hardware on the last iteration of the machine. And, FWIW, I've been waiting for this update for a long time and am coming from a 2008 MBP, and it's shocking how similar the experience is and how little improvement there has been in nine years...well, the negatives are that the ports are all gone and I can no longer upgrade the memory or the SSD, I've got a huge trackpad that doesn't work as well as the smaller one, and my function keys have been replaced with a touchbar that I have to look at, which is more expensive, and which takes many more key strokes to accomplish the same task. The plus is the screen is better, and given how huge and clunky the OS has become, I had to get a better processor just so it wouldn't lock up trying to run the OS. I can see where the touchbar could be useful if implemented in such a way that I could lock one particular group of menu items in it, such as the grouping and alignment tools in PowerPoint. But I really don't see that happening, especially when Apple has already applied it in a way that favors the "Gee doesn't it look cool with the little images" form over the "but it takes an extra three key strokes to do something really simple" lack of function.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WinstonRumfoord Avatar
115 months ago
Hehe, doesn't matter if apple finds a cure to cancer, they will still be hated here..
That's not really true. All apple woudl have to do to not be hated here is make the MBP a bit thicker in order to improve battery and add necessary "legacy" ports, like, oh, say, ethernet and USB. Spec update the Mac Mini. Spec update the Mac Pro.

Donezo.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
1050792 Avatar
115 months ago
Microsoft - The company that gives more attention to the competitors OS than their own,
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Tim Cook WWDC 2018

Report: Tim Cook to Step Down as Apple CEO 'as Soon as Next Year'

Saturday November 15, 2025 2:40 pm PST by
Apple is preparing for Tim Cook to step down as CEO of the company "as soon as next year," according to the Financial Times. The company's board of directors and senior executives "recently intensified preparations for Cook to hand over the reins," the report said. While the report said that Apple is unlikely to name a new CEO before its next earnings report in late January, it went on to ...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4

Thursday November 13, 2025 11:35 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3, the AirPods 4, and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 firmware is 8B21, all up from the prior 8A358 firmware released in October. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 4 with ANC, and AirPods Pro 3...
iOS 26

Everything New in iOS 26.2 Beta 3

Monday November 17, 2025 3:20 pm PST by
Apple provided developers with the third beta of an upcoming iOS 26.2 update, and there are still new features that are being added with each beta that we get. We've rounded up all of the changes that Apple made in beta 3. AirDrop Apple added new AirDrop functionality, providing a way for two people to share files temporarily without having to add one another as contacts. iOS 26.2...
best early black friday deals

Best Black Friday Apple Deals Live Now - Save on AirPods, iPads, and Apple Watches

Saturday November 15, 2025 1:45 pm PST by
We're officially in the month of Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When ...
iPhone Pocket Short

iPhone Pocket Now Available to Order, But Already Selling Out

Friday November 14, 2025 6:20 am PST by
Apple recently teamed up with Japanese fashion brand ISSEY MIYAKE to create the iPhone Pocket, a limited-edition knitted accessory designed to carry an iPhone. iPhone Pocket is available to order on Apple's online store starting today, in the United States, France, China, Italy, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. However, it is already completely sold out in the United...
Apple Wallet ID Illinois

iPhone Driver's License Feature Launching in Illinois

Tuesday November 18, 2025 8:47 am PST by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Starting this Wednesday, November 19, the feature will be available to residents of Illinois. The announcement confirmed that the...
apple silicon mac lineup 2024 feature purple m5

Apple's 2026 Mac Plans

Friday November 14, 2025 3:23 pm PST by
Most of Apple's Macs are slated to get M5 chips across 2026, and there's a possibility we'll even see the first M6 chips toward the end of the year. Updates are planned for everything from the MacBook Air to the Mac Studio. MacBook Air (Early 2026) The MacBook Air will be one of the first Macs to get a 2026 refresh, with an update planned for the first few months of the year. The MacBook...
CarPlay Liquid Glass Dark

Here's When Tesla is Expected to Add Support for Apple CarPlay

Sunday November 16, 2025 6:49 am PST by
In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reiterated that Tesla plans to add Apple CarPlay support to its vehicles "in the coming months." This is easily the biggest news for the regular version of CarPlay in years, should Tesla actually follow through with offering the system in its vehicles. As noted by Gurman, this would be a stunning reversal for Tesla and its CEO Elon ...
Apple Sports App Preview Feature

Apple Sports App on iPhone Now Available in More European Countries

Monday November 17, 2025 6:27 am PST by
The free Apple Sports app on the iPhone was released in additional European countries today, including Belgium, Croatia, Czechia, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Poland, Hungary, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Serbia, Greece, Estonia, Latvia, Romania, Ukraine, and others. The app was already available in the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Austria, France, Germany,...
tvOS 26 Profiles

tvOS 26.2 Adds a Useful New Feature to Your Apple TV

Friday November 14, 2025 10:02 am PST by
Starting with the upcoming tvOS 26.2 update, currently in beta, additional profiles created on the Apple TV no longer require their own Apple Account. In the Settings app on the Apple TV, under Profiles and Accounts, anyone can create a new profile by simply entering a name and indicating whether the profile is for a kid. The profile will be associated with the primary user's Apple Account,...