Microsoft Brings Whiteboard to iOS and Web, Coming to Android in the Future

Microsoft is bringing its collaborative digital canvas app Whiteboard to more platforms. The app initially launched on Microsoft’s Surface devices as a way to let users collaborate on a digital canvas in real-time. Today, the app is coming to all Windows 10 users, and it’s also landing on new platforms soon.

Whiteboard is coming soon on iOS, and it’s also coming to the web as a preview. Microsoft is working on bringing Whiteboard to Android in the future, and the company plans on integrating Whiteboard directly into Microsoft Teams. Microsoft’s Whiteboard app on iOS and web works just like it does on Windows 10: you can use pen, touch, and keyboard to jot down notes, create tables and shapes, freeform drawings, search and insert images from the web, etc.

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Whiteboard is available for all users, but the real-time collaboration feature would require you to have an Office 365 account. If you don’t have an Office 365 subscription but the person you are collaborating with has one, you can still use real-time collaboration which is pretty cool.

Whiteboard’s launch on more platforms, especially iOS, is a bit of an interesting move from Microsoft. That’s because inking on a phone screen can be difficult, although the app could be useful for those iPads. This is presumably more about making Whiteboard accessible on all devices so that users aren’t limited to only using Windows 10 devices. Microsoft has been focusing on making all of its services cross-platform, plus the iOS app will allow users to collaborate on the go, so it makes quite a bit of sense.

The iOS and web apps aren’t available yet, but they should be available soon.

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Conversation 3 comments

  • Dan1986ist

    Premium Member
    12 July, 2018 - 5:28 pm

    <p>So, wonder if the web version of Whiteboard will be a PWA, maybe? </p>

  • MacLiam

    Premium Member
    12 July, 2018 - 6:08 pm

    <p>Whiteboard has become one of my most-used apps. I'm not a member of any teams, but the ability to use multiple machines to open a standard set of note cards and continue working on ideas and projects that I started previously plays to the way I use my machines. I like sketching and scribbling down notes longhand, and while I can do that with other apps (OneNote, obviously), Whiteboard is faster and more easily used. When Microsoft finally releases Andromeda, Whiteboard will be one of the first apps I use on on the one I buy the first day they are available. In the interim, it's great to know that I'll be able to use an iOS version of it in the near future.</p>

  • Wolf

    Premium Member
    15 July, 2018 - 2:15 pm

    <p>This is great. Actually, the Whiteboard app has been around since NetMeeting in NT4.</p>

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