Microsoft Launches 'Office 365 Personal' Plan for One Mac and One iPad at $69/Year

[shandyman]

Microsoft Launches 'Office 365 Personal' Plan for One Mac and One iPad at $69...

If you don't use any of that, then it wouldn't be worth it I guess. *shrugs*



I doubt they're going to go with an iPad only subscription model at any time soon, though.

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People keep repeating how SaaS is bad, but refuse to acknowledge that paying 200$ every three years or so costs only slightly less than 70$ a year.

The new office 365 price is £60per year, so £180 every 3 years. Office home and student costs £90 every 3 years (which is a minimum, a lot of people don't always update to latest version each time, so could have same one for 6 years plus). Onedrive already gives you 7Gb free without going with office 365 (with 3Gb more if you backup camera roll to it). Tell me now which is more logical financially for the average user. As for Skype, that's a joke as most people just do Skype to Skype as it's free.

 

[Legend of Ive]

Next iWork

Tim Cook introducing next iWork

We have a basic version which is $69
We have a premium version which is $69
We have a enterprise version which is $69
We have a professional version which is $69

and then

We have the Ultimate version. We're throwing everything in there
AND IT IS $0

we think most people will buy the ultimate version

 

[jamesnajera]

Not good enough Microsoft

People (personal use) want to own a version of software, and not pay subscriptions. Remove collaborative features (Features used in big corporations) from Office and offer a version people can own without subscription.

 

[kolax]

And I wish the truck I'm shopping cost the same as a Civic. But it doesn't.

How about I tell you about the Civiv home, the Civiv professional, the Civiv ultimate, oh wait and the Civic home ultimate? Which one suits you best? They aren't marketing Office quite as bad as Windows, but you get the point.

It's not ideal for customers to have to start thinking about stuff like that. I want Microsoft Office. Having to work out which version I need because I own this device, this device and this device is a headache and not good marketing.

It's very easy for technologically literate people to point out the most suitable version. Not so much for the rest of the world, and Microsoft seem stuck on their "corporate/enterprise" business model.

And exactly what would be a "fair price" for everyone involved? How much would you think is "fair" to charge someone to use the software you and your team developed at a cost of tens of millions or more?

LibreOffice, iWork and Google Docs are all free (or close enough to free). A fair price would be one that isn't going to cost $90 a year just to use Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

Microsoft makes money on Office and Windows by charging ridiculous amounts. Now we've got a lot of cheaper/free options, Microsoft really needs to start pricing competitively if they want to keep their domination.

I work in an IT team for a University, and the various education options for Microsoft Office alone are ridiculous. Some include this, some don't include this, there's about 5-6 options.

They really need to just simplify it all and stop trying to sell so many different varieties of the same thing.

 

[ugahairydawgs]

Ok Microsoft. Now give me the chance of purchasing a lifetime license, like in past years...

Because i'd rather pay 99-199 bucks one time, than 69 bucks every mf year.

That's the thing. Your one-time fee is not going to be slightly more than the shelf price. If the yearly rate is $69 the "lifetime" rate would probably be somewhere in the neighborhood of $500 and would likely only cover the current gen software.

 

[roadbloc]

really? 69? and they plan to compete it with other apps?

Name one app that is a serious competitor to Office.

 

[Steve121178]

Tim Cook introducing next iWork

We have a basic version which is $69
We have a premium version which is $69
We have a enterprise version which is $69
We have a professional version which is $69

and then

We have the Ultimate version. We're throwing everything in there
AND IT IS $0

we think most people will buy the ultimate version

Most people in the Enterprise use Office. Enterprise users don't want/need iWork crap.

 

[roadbloc]

Ok Microsoft. Now give me the chance of purchasing a lifetime license, like in past years...

You still can. Feel free to buy.

 

[sracer]

Tim Cook introducing next iWork

We have a basic version which is $69
We have a premium version which is $69
We have a enterprise version which is $69
We have a professional version which is $69

and then

We have the Ultimate version. We're throwing everything in there
AND IT IS $0

we think most people will buy the ultimate version

The $0 "Ultimate Version" that has 1/3 the functionality of the basic version.

 

[Espeonia]

However, as people have pointed out, this subscription model ends up costing customers 2-4x as much as the purchase model, WITHOUT adding any material customer value.

Um, no. For some people it may have been cheaper since they're students, but in that case, the relevant price is a 4-year subscription for $69, for the entire 4 years. This means that for you, it would have been $17.5/year, which is under your $25/year "customer value".

Don't compare personal licenses to student licenses; the student ones always cost less.

 

[duervo]

Alright ... Somebody has to do it ... And don't say nobody was thinking it!

 

[Michael Goff]

Google Drive is Free
Apple iWork is Free

So why isn't Microsoft Office Free?

Apple subsidizes iWork through hardware sales.
Google subsidizes Google Drive (which you have no localized option, but whatever) through advertising. They're legally allowed to use your data.
Microsoft would be subsidizing with.... ?

The new office 365 price is £60per year, so £180 every 3 years. Office home and student costs £90 every 3 years (which is a minimum, a lot of people don't always update to latest version each time, so could have same one for 6 years plus). Onedrive already gives you 7Gb free without going with office 365 (with 3Gb more if you backup camera roll to it). Tell me now which is more logical financially for the average user. As for Skype, that's a joke as most people just do Skype to Skype as it's free.

Alright, let's break it down for you.

You pay 90 pounds every 3 years for the Mac or PC version and another 90 pounds for the iPad version every 3 years. You just got up to 180 pounds without adding in the 20gb of SkyDrive space or the minutes you don't care about.

So, yes, it is potentially a good deal.

Plus, at 7$ a month it's just a single person eating out 1 less time per month (roughly).

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The $0 "Ultimate Version" that has 1/3 the functionality of the basic version.

But... I'm told that I could easily give up Office completely and iWork would be able to do it all.

 

[IJ Reilly]

The cost is about $69 too much.

 

[Stella]

LibreOffice, iWork and Google Docs are all free (or close enough to free). A fair price would be one that isn't going to cost $90 a year just to use Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

And what would a fair price be? That opinion changes between person to person. Many people think a fair price is .99c and nothing more - for any application.

 

[Michael Goff]

The cost is about $69 too much.

If you ever think they're going to give away Office for free, I have a bridge to sell you.

 

[shandyman]

Microsoft Launches 'Office 365 Personal' Plan for One Mac and One iPad at $69...

Alright, let's break it down for you.



You pay 90 pounds every 3 years for the Mac or PC version and another 90 pounds for the iPad version every 3 years. You just got up to 180 pounds without adding in the 20gb of SkyDrive space or the minutes you don't care about.



So, yes, it is potentially a good deal.



Plus, at 7$ a month it's just a single person eating out 1 less time per month (roughly).

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But... I'm told that I could easily give up Office completely and iWork would be able to do it all.

Where are you getting £90 for iPad?! Your breakdown is irelevant. No one would ever pay that for that. Currently on iPad, I use pages and numbers, which are free. If MS offered the iPad app as a one off fee, I'd expect it to be £5 like pages, numbers and keynote was, or £10 at most. This is the point. MS need to offer a non subscription alternative. This is what me and others in this thread are trying to point out.

 

[Espeonia]

The new office 365 price is £60per year, so £180 every 3 years. Office home and student costs £90 every 3 years (which is a minimum, a lot of people don't always update to latest version each time, so could have same one for 6 years plus). Onedrive already gives you 7Gb free without going with office 365 (with 3Gb more if you backup camera roll to it). Tell me now which is more logical financially for the average user. As for Skype, that's a joke as most people just do Skype to Skype as it's free.

Please, don't compare the regular office 365 to the student edition of Office. You'd pay £60 for 4 years, which is a much better deal than £90 up front every 3 years.

Once you're out of Uni then you'll have to bump up to the regular editions, where you still save a slim amount on 365.

 

[BornAgainApple]

I have no use for the full suite, so I'll gladly pay a one-time fee for Word on my iPad. Until they allow that, I'll stick with Pages.

 

[RMo]

I really wish they'd offer a simple one subscription to rule them all at a fair price.

Really? I'd much rather they offer a one-time purchase of a license to use indefinitely rather than a subscription I have to renew every moth or every year. Some math: even at $69.99/yr with this new plan, you'd be better off buying Office Home and Student for $140 if you plan to use it for more than two years (and don't need Access or Outlook).

If you primarily use Windows, buying outright is probably an even better option since Microsoft tends to bend over backwards to maintain backwards compatibility with new versions of Windows. If you primarily use a Mac or tablet--both less known for backwards compatibility--I can see this being more valuable since you'll get the latest app updates that will probably be necessary to maintain OS and device compatibility.

 

[Michael Goff]

Where are you getting £90 for iPad?! Your breakdown is irelevant. No one would ever pay that for that. Currently on iPad, I use pages and numbers, which are free. If MS offered the iPad app as a one off fee, I'd expect it to be £5 like pages, numbers and keynote was, or £10 at most. This is the point. MS need to offer a non subscription alternative. This is what me and others in this thread are trying to point out.

They'd likely price it the same as the normal one, since it is full Office. People around here said they'd pay "full Office for Home" price one time.

If you're expecting them to charge the weak price that Apple used to charge, I have a second bridge (if the guy buys the first) to sell you.

 

[imacken]

I frankly cannot believe the fuss here over getting:
1) always the latest versions of Office for Mac (2014 confirmed as coming this year)
2) useful OneDrive space
3) excellent Office apps for iPad.
And how much does it cost? £5.50 per month for 5 desktop users and 5 tablet users. (£65 from Amazon)
It's less than the price of a beer in Pizza Express! I know which I would rather have, an extra beer per month or a sub for all my family to Office for Mac and iPad!

 

[SlyMac]

Man, I hate this new "rental" model for office. I bought Office 2003 when it came out and didnt upgrade until 2012. It cost me about 200 when I purchased it. Now, I'm looking at close to 600 for that much time. Plus, I just don't see any possible new continuous features coming out that would make this appealing.

 

[shandyman]

Please, don't compare the regular office 365 to the student edition of Office. You'd pay £60 for 4 years, which is a much better deal than £90 up front every 3 years.



Once you're out of Uni then you'll have to bump up to the regular editions, where you still save a slim amount on 365.

The home and student version in the uk isn't just for students. It's called home and student, so anyone can buy it, not just students. Is that clear for you?! Your post fails as you missed that fact.

 

[Espeonia]

Where are you getting £90 for iPad?! Your breakdown is irelevant. No one would ever pay that for that. Currently on iPad, I use pages and numbers, which are free. If MS offered the iPad app as a one off fee, I'd expect it to be £5 like pages, numbers and keynote was, or £10 at most. This is the point. MS need to offer a non subscription alternative. This is what me and others in this thread are trying to point out.

Then they get a bit of revenue and… then what? They provide you updates for the rest of your life? If they put out an entirely new app, then people will get mad over how they already bought the app once and now they have to pay for it again, while also expecting support and updates for their app when they no longer pay.

All software has a lifespan. If it's on a subscription, you get the newest, shiny thing when it's out for a higher gross cost, compared against if you bought Office once, or a lower gross cost, if you buy Office every 3 years. Either way you're paying for the support of that software, just with a subscription, it's always the newest.

 

[SlyMac]

I frankly cannot believe the fuss here over getting:
1) always the latest versions of Office for Mac (2014 confirmed as coming this year)
2) useful OneDrive space
3) excellent Office apps for iPad.
And how much does it cost? £5.50 per month for 5 desktop users and 5 tablet users. (£65 from Amazon)
It's less than the price of a beer in Pizza Express! I know which I would rather have, an extra beer per month or a sub for all my family to Office for Mac and iPad!

I think you need to understand what MOST users who have office do with it. They arent power users who need all of the extras that this plan is peddling. Most people use it occasionally and never touch the advanced features at home. For me, its extra money for additional utility (supposedly) that I'll never use.