MacBooks with M1 chip get new Microsoft Office update

News
By
published

A new Microsoft Office released designed to work with Macbooks featuring M1 chip

MacBook Pro
(Image credit: Apple)

Microsoft released a new Office that's compatible with Apple's new Big Sur OS and the recently announced Macs featuring M1 processors. So out the gate, Microsoft Office should run on the New Macbook Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini without issue. 

Thanks to Apple's Rosetta 2 translation software, the M1-powered Macs can run x86-64 code written for Intel Macs. Microsoft covered how it will work in its announcement. 

In the announcement, Microsoft mentions that there are some performance considerations in regards to running Office via Rosetta 2, stating, "The first launch of each Office app will take longer as the operating system has to generate optimized code for the ‌Apple Silicon‌ processor. Users will notice that the apps 'bounce' in the dock for approximately 20 seconds while this process completes. Subsequent app launches will be fast."

According to Apple, running apps meant for Intel-based processors via Rosetta 2 is just a temporary solution and in the near future, it is expected that developers create software that natively runs on Mac's new ARM M1 processors. 

To that end, Microsoft reiterated its intentions of porting Office to the new Mac architecture so it runs natively, "...we've already started the process of moving Mac apps to universal binaries. In the future we will natively support both Apple Silicon and Intel chipsets within the same executable." 

It appears we're entering a new age of processor innovation with Apple once again leading the way. 

Mark Anthony Ramirez
Mark Anthony Ramirez

Mark has spent 20 years headlining comedy shows around the country and made appearances on ABC, MTV, Comedy Central, Howard Stern, Food Network, and Sirius XM Radio. He has written about every topic imaginable, from dating, family, politics, social issues, and tech. He wrote his first tech articles for the now-defunct Dads On Tech 10 years ago, and his passion for combining humor and tech has grown under the tutelage of the Laptop Mag team. His penchant for tearing things down and rebuilding them did not make Mark popular at home, however, when he got his hands on the legendary Commodore 64, his passion for all things tech deepened. These days, when he is not filming, editing footage, tinkering with cameras and laptops, or on stage, he can be found at his desk snacking, writing about everything tech, new jokes, or scripts he dreams of filming.