Excel 2013 Update!

Excel 2013 is part of the new Microsoft Office suite, of course, and many of us are eager to see the final version released. I have been using the beta version of the suite for several months, and you can count me in as one of the early adopters who is excited (and maybe a bit impatient) to get my hands on the Final Release.

Two Big Questions are Out There:

1. When will it be released?
2. How much will it cost?

As concerns the First Question, we do not as yet know with any absolute precision, but industry insiders now say it looks like it will be sometime in January. Although this may seem like a long time to wait for the update on our favorite spreadsheet software, kudos to Microsoft may be in order for waiting until they are more sure the bugs are out.

As concerns the Second Question, that information is here! We now know there will be Two Basic Approaches to acquiring the 2013 version of MS Office (and, of course Excel):

1. The Traditional Method of purchasing software: Locally-installed and with the license valid for just a single PC or Mac. The pricing will be similar to what is has been in the past: Office 2013 Home & Student will cost $139.99, Office 2013 Home & Business is $219.99, and Office 2013 Professional will retail for $399.99.

2. A newer Subscription Method: Alternatively, consumers can opt for the online subscription-based offerings. Office 365 Home Premium is $99.99 per year (or $8.33 per month), and Office 365 Small Business Premium is $149.99 per year per user (or $12.50 per month per user).

If you are like me, you may be adverse to paying for a Subscription, rather than having your own copy on your personal hard drive, but consider this: With Home Premium Subscription, the you also get Outlook, Access, and Publisher (not included with Office 2013 Home and Student edition), an additional 20GB of online file storage with SkyDrive, and 60 minutes per month of Skype calls. Plus, it can be Shared across Five different users and/or devices!

Whichever way you choose to acquire your Excel 2013 product, I am confident that you will find things to like in this latest rendition. If you haven’t yet experienced the beta, you can go to Microsoft.com to download a Free Trial version today.

Happy Halloween and Excelling!