Microsoft has just announced that the new versions of the Office applications like Word, Excel and PowerPoint apps are going to be available in Urdu language for Android phones at the end of this month.

Microsoft Word, Powerpoint and Excel are basically the industry standards around the world and essential tools for every computer, even in Pakistan. Currently available in a total of 43 languages, the addition of Urdu language will bring the total languages supported by Microsoft Office up to 44. These apps join Microsoft’s previously released Office apps for Android phones to complete the Office experience for Urdu-speaking Android users.

“We are committed to empowering people all over the world to do and achieve more by bringing top quality experiences to our customers across all devices and platforms,” said Kamran Masood Niazi, Communications Manager, MEA from Microsoft,

The roll out of Office in Urdu for Android phones will have the same robust capabilities and familiar look and feel of Office while offering users a fantastic touch experience built specifically for Android devices.

Office apps in Urdu will be free to download for everyone. Logging in with a free Microsoft account gives customers access to the ‘core experience’ which includes creating and light editing. The free account will let users view, edit, create and share documents on the go, present from the phone on a big screen or TV and also let them easily access or store documents in the cloud. However, to access premium features, customers must have a qualifying Office 365 subscription.

Download Microsoft Office for Android.

Microsoft’s Office suite of applications is probably the most popular set of desktop software in all of the desktop world. Although Google has won some people over with its cloud based Google Docs, Microsoft has remained the office king and it is quite rare to come across a computer, even in Pakistan, that doesn’t have Office installed. The move to add Urdu support for Android phones will encourage even more mobile users to take advantage of the software without having to learn English first.

Note: The Microsoft Office suite of apps still show “This item can not be installed in your device’s country” when trying to download from the Google Play Store. We are not sure why it is still not available, but hopefully, Microsoft will enable support for Pakistan after updating the app with Urdu language.

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