Microsoft 365 Basic will give you 100GB of cloud storage for $2 a month, but is missing Office
Microsoft 365 Basic will give you 100GB of cloud storage for $2 a month, but is missing Office
The new Microsoft 365 plan is tailored toward those who loves the cloud
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: Microsoft 365 Basic
🆕 A new budget tier is coming to Microsoft 365
☁ Microsoft 365 Basic will include 100GB of OneDrive cloud storage
😥 But doesn’t provide access to the desktop versions of Word, Excel or PowerPoint
💰 It’ll cost only $1.99 a month when it launches later this month
Microsoft is rolling out a new budget tier for its 365 subscription service tailored to those who want reams of cloud storage but aren’t after the desktop versions of Word, Excel and other Office products.
For $1.99 a month, Microsoft 365 Basic will provide 100GB of OneDrive cloud storage, ad-free versions of Outlook web and mobile, and “enhanced security features”, according to The Verge. Those security features will include improved inbox encryption and malware scans for links and attachments.
Missing from Microsoft 365 Basic, however, is access to the full Office suite. Subscribers will be able to access the pared-down web versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and Outlook, although these are available to anyone who creates a free Microsoft account.
The new tier will slot between the free version of Microsoft 365, which offers only 5GB of OneDrive storage, and the $6.99 per month Personal subscription that includes the desktop versions of the Office suite. It will also replace the previous 100GB OneDrive storage option that included fewer perks.
“We know many people are using our services today, but some of them run out of storage or want additional benefits that you don’t get with the free Microsoft 365 experience,” Gareth Oystryk, Microsoft’s director of product marketing, told The Verge. “We also designed this specifically with Windows users in mind.”
Microsoft 365 Basic is scheduled to launch on January 30, when members of the current 100GB OneDrive plan will be automatically upgraded to the new tier. If you’re not that interested in cloud storage, look out for Office discounts that occasionally appear – sometimes with massive price cuts.
Subscription services are increasingly essential for Microsoft. It’s been nearly a decade since it launched 365 to transform Office into a monthly subscription service, and the company has spent the last few years trying to make the same transformation to its gaming portfolio with Xbox Game Pass.
If the company’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard survives the current FTC lawsuit, Microsoft will become only more confident in the quality of its gaming subscription platform attracting regular monthly subscribers – even if it did miss last year’s growth target.