If you’ve been following the Microsoft news carefully, you might have heard of the company’s newly renamed consumer subscription services. What was once known as Office 365 Home and Personal are now known as Microsoft 365 Personal and Family.
That said, there are still some differences to know about these two plans especially when it comes to how they stand out from a free Microsoft Account. In this guide, we’ll take at that and help you choose the one that’s right for your personal use or family.
Free Microsoft Account
What is a Microsoft account? | Microsoft
If you’ve been following the Microsoft news carefully, you might have heard of the company’s newly renamed consumer subscription services. What was once known as Office 365 Home and Personal are now known as Microsoft 365 Personal and Family. That said, there are still some differences to know about
We’ll get started by mentioning a Microsoft Account. Anyone can create a Microsoft Account, free of charge, and add credit or debit card details later to enjoy Microsoft’s paid subscription services. A free account gives you access to some of the same things that you’ll get with a Microsoft 365 Personal or Family account, including Office, OneDrive, Outlook, Skype. You’ll also get an Outlook.com email address, too, as well as the ability to create an Xbox Live profile, and enjoy Microsoft’s other services. However, there are some very important limits with free Microsoft Account. We’ll be taking a look at those now.
When it comes to Office, a free Microsoft Account only comes with access to web apps, and the free mobile apps on iOS and Android. This will give you basic editing functionalities, but some more sophisticated features like the drawing and mailings elements of Word will not available. You’ll still have access to co-editing and the same ability to preserve formatting across the web, mobile, and desktop apps, however.
In other areas of Office, a free Microsoft Account also gets you limited access to some of the features Microsoft announced for its new subscription service. You’ll be able to enjoy basic spelling and grammar checks with Microsoft Editor, layout recommendations with PowerPoint Designer, Filter Words and pacing with PowerPoint Presenter Coach, too. As for the creative aspect of PowerPoint, you’ll get access to 2,000 templates, 750 images, 25 loops videos, 82 fonts, and 320 icons.
Now, for OneDrive. A free Microsoft Account gets you access to 5GB of storage, and the same integrations with Windows 10 as a paid Microsoft 365 Plan. You’ll be able to enjoy Files on Demand, PC Folder backup, and Personal Vault. However, you won’t get Ransomware detection and recovery, or password-protected sharing links. You’ll also have to keep that 5GB limit in mind when using the service. There’s also a 3 files limit with Personal Vault, too.
On the emailing side things, in Outlook, you’ll get your own Outlook.com email address, and access to the web app, and mobile app for iOS and Android. You also can use the Play my Emails feature of Cortana on Android. Storage limits on mailboxes, though, will cap out at 15GB, but you will get the Calendar integration with Google Calendar, TeamSnap, and Schools.
Finally, there is Skype. With Skype and a free Microsoft Account, you’ll still be able to enjoy unlimited voice and video calling for up to 50 people. You’ll also get call recording, subtitles and live captions, and guest links.
Microsoft 365 Personal and Microsoft 365 Family
Microsoft 365: A subscription to make the most of your time
If you’ve been following the Microsoft news carefully, you might have heard of the company’s newly renamed consumer subscription services. What was once known as Office 365 Home and Personal are now known as Microsoft 365 Personal and Family. That said, there are still some differences to know about
Now, for Microsoft 365 Personal and Microsoft 365 Family. These two plans are otherwise the same when it comes to features, but the pricing is different once they become available on April 21. Microsoft 365 Personal is $6.99 per month and is best used with one person. Microsoft 365 Family, meanwhile is $9.99 per month and can be used with up to 6 people. There are no other differences between the two, other than price, and how many people can access the plan.
When it comes to Office, though, both Microsoft 365 Personal and Microsoft 365 Family are much different from a free Microsoft Account. In addition to having access to the web versions of the Office apps, these two paid subscriptions get you the desktop versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook for MacOS and/or Windows 10. You’ll also enjoy the same real-time co-authoring and formatting preservation as a free plan. Offline editing is also included, so you don’t have to worry about staying online to edit your files. However, there are some extra features that only subscriptions can offer.
With Microsoft 365 Personal and Microsoft 365 Family, you’ll get access to advanced grammar and style features of Microsoft Editor (Editor only includes spelling and grammar for free). You’ll also get advanced layout recommendations with premium content, and extra monotone pitch, originality, and speech refinement options in PowerPoint Presenter Coach. There is also the added benefit of Money in Excel, which isn’t included with a free Microsoft Account. This feature lets you make spreadsheets to manage your bank accounts, and more. Elsewhere, you’ll also get access to 300 additional templates, 8,000 images, 175 looping videos, 300 fonts, and 2800 icons for creative content in Excel.
Looking at OneDrive, now, these paid plans offer you much more storage space than a free plan. You’ll get access to up to 1TB of space per person. The same integrations with Windows 10 and Office are also here, as well as Files On Demand, PC Folder backup, and Personal Vault. However, you need not worry about limits, as Personal Vault with these paid plans has unlimited storage up to your 1TB quota. You also get extra ransomware detection and recovery, as well as expiring and password protected sharing links.
In terms of emailing, the paid plans also boost your experience quite a bit. In addition to the web and mobile Outlook apps, paid plans give you access to the Outlook desktop app on Windows 10 and MacOS. Storage is also boosted up to 50GB on your mailbox, and you get additional custom email domains, and advanced security features like email encryption and link checking, too.
Finally, there’s Skype. With Skype, you’ll get some extras there, too. In addition to unlimited Skype to Skype voice and video calling, and call recording, subtitles, guest links, you’ll get mobile phone and landline calling too. This has a limit of 60 minutes per month, however.
Other differences
In addition to Office, Skype, Outlook, and OneDrive, a free Microsoft Account and paid Microsoft 365 Home and Family plans have some other differences too. When it comes to support, a free Microsoft account only has account and set up support. Microsoft 365 Home and Family, though, come with ongoing technical support for Windows 10 and all the Microsoft 365 apps. There’s also the Microsoft Family Safety app, too, which comes with paid plans. This app lets families share their locations with each other, and also and manage screen time across Windows, Xbox, and Android. Parents can even use the app to track how their teens are driving.
You’ll also find that these paid plans have access to the Partner Benefits program if you’re in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom or the United States. Microsoft has a list of these here, some are valued as much as $134 to as little as $27.
Do you think you’ll opt in to the new Microsoft 365 Home or Family plans? Or will you be keeping a free Microsoft Account? Let us know in the comments below.
The federal government is ordering the dissolution of TikTok’s Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind the social media platform, but stopped short of ordering people to stay off the app.
Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced the government’s “wind up” demand Wednesday, saying it is meant to address “risks” related to ByteDance Ltd.’s establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc.
“The decision was based on the information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada’s security and intelligence community and other government partners,” he said in a statement.
The announcement added that the government is not blocking Canadians’ access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content.
However, it urged people to “adopt good cybersecurity practices and assess the possible risks of using social media platforms and applications, including how their information is likely to be protected, managed, used and shared by foreign actors, as well as to be aware of which country’s laws apply.”
Champagne’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment seeking details about what evidence led to the government’s dissolution demand, how long ByteDance has to comply and why the app is not being banned.
A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement that the shutdown of its Canadian offices will mean the loss of hundreds of well-paying local jobs.
“We will challenge this order in court,” the spokesperson said.
“The TikTok platform will remain available for creators to find an audience, explore new interests and for businesses to thrive.”
The federal Liberals ordered a national security review of TikTok in September 2023, but it was not public knowledge until The Canadian Press reported in March that it was investigating the company.
At the time, it said the review was based on the expansion of a business, which it said constituted the establishment of a new Canadian entity. It declined to provide any further details about what expansion it was reviewing.
A government database showed a notification of new business from TikTok in June 2023. It said Network Sense Ventures Ltd. in Toronto and Vancouver would engage in “marketing, advertising, and content/creator development activities in relation to the use of the TikTok app in Canada.”
Even before the review, ByteDance and TikTok were lightning rod for privacy and safety concerns because Chinese national security laws compel organizations in the country to assist with intelligence gathering.
Such concerns led the U.S. House of Representatives to pass a bill in March designed to ban TikTok unless its China-based owner sells its stake in the business.
Champagne’s office has maintained Canada’s review was not related to the U.S. bill, which has yet to pass.
Canada’s review was carried out through the Investment Canada Act, which allows the government to investigate any foreign investment with potential to might harm national security.
While cabinet can make investors sell parts of the business or shares, Champagne has said the act doesn’t allow him to disclose details of the review.
Wednesday’s dissolution order was made in accordance with the act.
The federal government banned TikTok from its mobile devices in February 2023 following the launch of an investigation into the company by federal and provincial privacy commissioners.
— With files from Anja Karadeglija in Ottawa
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
LONDON (AP) — Most people have accumulated a pile of data — selfies, emails, videos and more — on their social media and digital accounts over their lifetimes. What happens to it when we die?
It’s wise to draft a will spelling out who inherits your physical assets after you’re gone, but don’t forget to take care of your digital estate too. Friends and family might treasure files and posts you’ve left behind, but they could get lost in digital purgatory after you pass away unless you take some simple steps.
Here’s how you can prepare your digital life for your survivors:
Apple
The iPhone maker lets you nominate a “ legacy contact ” who can access your Apple account’s data after you die. The company says it’s a secure way to give trusted people access to photos, files and messages. To set it up you’ll need an Apple device with a fairly recent operating system — iPhones and iPads need iOS or iPadOS 15.2 and MacBooks needs macOS Monterey 12.1.
For iPhones, go to settings, tap Sign-in & Security and then Legacy Contact. You can name one or more people, and they don’t need an Apple ID or device.
You’ll have to share an access key with your contact. It can be a digital version sent electronically, or you can print a copy or save it as a screenshot or PDF.
Take note that there are some types of files you won’t be able to pass on — including digital rights-protected music, movies and passwords stored in Apple’s password manager. Legacy contacts can only access a deceased user’s account for three years before Apple deletes the account.
Google
Google takes a different approach with its Inactive Account Manager, which allows you to share your data with someone if it notices that you’ve stopped using your account.
When setting it up, you need to decide how long Google should wait — from three to 18 months — before considering your account inactive. Once that time is up, Google can notify up to 10 people.
You can write a message informing them you’ve stopped using the account, and, optionally, include a link to download your data. You can choose what types of data they can access — including emails, photos, calendar entries and YouTube videos.
There’s also an option to automatically delete your account after three months of inactivity, so your contacts will have to download any data before that deadline.
Facebook and Instagram
Some social media platforms can preserve accounts for people who have died so that friends and family can honor their memories.
When users of Facebook or Instagram die, parent company Meta says it can memorialize the account if it gets a “valid request” from a friend or family member. Requests can be submitted through an online form.
The social media company strongly recommends Facebook users add a legacy contact to look after their memorial accounts. Legacy contacts can do things like respond to new friend requests and update pinned posts, but they can’t read private messages or remove or alter previous posts. You can only choose one person, who also has to have a Facebook account.
You can also ask Facebook or Instagram to delete a deceased user’s account if you’re a close family member or an executor. You’ll need to send in documents like a death certificate.
TikTok
The video-sharing platform says that if a user has died, people can submit a request to memorialize the account through the settings menu. Go to the Report a Problem section, then Account and profile, then Manage account, where you can report a deceased user.
Once an account has been memorialized, it will be labeled “Remembering.” No one will be able to log into the account, which prevents anyone from editing the profile or using the account to post new content or send messages.
X
It’s not possible to nominate a legacy contact on Elon Musk’s social media site. But family members or an authorized person can submit a request to deactivate a deceased user’s account.
Passwords
Besides the major online services, you’ll probably have dozens if not hundreds of other digital accounts that your survivors might need to access. You could just write all your login credentials down in a notebook and put it somewhere safe. But making a physical copy presents its own vulnerabilities. What if you lose track of it? What if someone finds it?
Instead, consider a password manager that has an emergency access feature. Password managers are digital vaults that you can use to store all your credentials. Some, like Keeper,Bitwarden and NordPass, allow users to nominate one or more trusted contacts who can access their keys in case of an emergency such as a death.
But there are a few catches: Those contacts also need to use the same password manager and you might have to pay for the service.
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LONDON (AP) — Britain’s competition watchdog said Thursday it’s opening a formal investigation into Google’s partnership with artificial intelligence startup Anthropic.
The Competition and Markets Authority said it has “sufficient information” to launch an initial probe after it sought input earlier this year on whether the deal would stifle competition.
The CMA has until Dec. 19 to decide whether to approve the deal or escalate its investigation.
“Google is committed to building the most open and innovative AI ecosystem in the world,” the company said. “Anthropic is free to use multiple cloud providers and does, and we don’t demand exclusive tech rights.”
San Francisco-based Anthropic was founded in 2021 by siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei, who previously worked at ChatGPT maker OpenAI. The company has focused on increasing the safety and reliability of AI models. Google reportedly agreed last year to make a multibillion-dollar investment in Anthropic, which has a popular chatbot named Claude.
Anthropic said it’s cooperating with the regulator and will provide “the complete picture about Google’s investment and our commercial collaboration.”
“We are an independent company and none of our strategic partnerships or investor relationships diminish the independence of our corporate governance or our freedom to partner with others,” it said in a statement.
The U.K. regulator has been scrutinizing a raft of AI deals as investment money floods into the industry to capitalize on the artificial intelligence boom. Last month it cleared Anthropic’s $4 billion deal with Amazon and it has also signed off on Microsoft’s deals with two other AI startups, Inflection and Mistral.
