Microsoft Office 365 and Cloud Space Technology

[Gemma]

One for the more technically minded, or maybe just smarter than me

For work, I currently pay an annual subscription for a Microsoft account which gives me the following:

• 1 TB of cloud space
• Office 365
  • Outlook
  • Word
  • Excel
  • PowerPoint
  • One Note
  • MS Teams
  • Skype
  • A lot of other stuff I don't want and some stuff I don't even understand
• Technical support and security
• Updates on software

I was thinking that maybe there's a more cost-effective solution to an annual subscription to all of that. Maybe if I just subscribed to the 1TB of cloud space and bought standalone applications for Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint - pretty much all I use or need to access - it'd work out cheaper in the long run.

So I just chatted with MS technical support. This is what I found out.

My annual subscription to the above is £59.99

If I go the route I'm suggesting above, I'd buy all the packages separately but the annual charge for JUST the 1TB of One Drive cloud space is around £120 a year. 100GB is around £20

I'm obviously missing something. Any ideas on what's wrong with my thinking? What question have I not asked? What have I misunderstood?

 

[Dylan]

From what I understand, you can buy the 1 year subscription from many online sellers for a lot less than £60. You can (I believe) use this to extend your current subscription. I think if you buy the stand alone packages, they are not updated

 

[Franco Pinion]

I buy my annual sub from Amazon as they are cheaper than MS direct. There are cheaper options on eBay but I've never trusted them.

Software subscriptions are unfortunately the norm now as it is ongoing income for the vendors.

 

[Birdman]

Maybe consider the free options such as Libre Office and the Google Suite. Unless you are an advanced user, Google Docs/Sheets is as good as Word and Excel and in some ways better.

 

[David76]

If you want the OneDrive space above 200GB then Microsoft 365 is the best choice.

You can buy it when cheap from Amazon/Argos and it is cheaper again to get the family package and split it with others.

You can get M365 Family on Amazon just now for £67 but it has been as low as £45 lately.

 

[Deleted member 63]

Maybe consider the free options such as Libre Office and the Google Suite. Unless you are an advanced user, Google Docs/Sheets is as good as Word and Excel and in some ways better.

I use Google Docs for my writing and it is fine (I write short fiction and the odd poem). You only get 15GB of storage out of box, though, so might have to spring for extra space, but Google's prices are pretty inexpensive since it is just for storage, not software. I have a 100GB plan but that's because we have backups of family photos and videos stored on it as well as my work. If it was just me, the basic 15GB would be enough (I am not that prolific yet ).

 

[Best]

Is it possible to host from cloud space?

No. This isn't for hosting websites. What Gemma is referring to is for Microsoft Office and productivity apps (Microsoft Teams, webinars etc) and sharing documents via all your desktops and devices.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-365/business/compare-all-microsoft-365-business-products

 

[8-Ball]

£44.99 in Argos for Microsoft 365 Family 6 People and McAfee Unlimited Devices

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/8837505

 

[Gemma]

£44.99 in Argos for Microsoft 365 Family 6 People and McAfee Unlimited Devices

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/8837505

Excellent. Just bought it. Got another £5 off plus £4 cashback

Thanks 8-Ball