UPDATE: CAN'T Fix? : Formula Bar Now at Bottom of Excel (for Android) Screen

Anonymous
2022-01-15T19:25:31+00:00

Happy 2022!

A couple days ago, I opened a spreadsheet (that I update, daily), & discovered that the Formula Bar had moved to the bottom of my screen. It still does what it's supposed to, but this positioning makes life difficult in multiple ways (details below).

I can't find an update to the Excel app, or Android OS, that seems recent enough to be responsible, though the Excel screen did seem to become set, approx the same time, to match phone's day/night color schemes.

I can't find any mention, or images – online, on Microsoft.com, in tech pubs/blogs, or community forums – of this behavior, or of any way to move the Formula Bar.

Can anyone provide insight into what happened, or how to fix it?

NOTE : System + app versions follow screenshot, along with "difficulties caused" – mentioned above.

Many thanks for any solution(s?) &/or insights❗

___________________

UPDATE: This morning [22-May'22], I opened Excel, on my Android phone, & MS "asked" whether I've enjoyed the "Updated Feature: …Has your editing experience become easier having the Formula Bar at the bottom?" {see add'l att}

BINGO ❗ IT'S A FEATURE, NOT A BUG

[Does not explain why an MS rep would request info, trying to replicate the "Feature"]

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PHONE : Samsung Galaxy S21 (5G)

OS : Android version 12 

  : One UI version 4.0

  : Android security patch 1-December'21

EXCEL (for Android) : V 1.0.1 (16.0.14729.20146)

PROBLEMS

• Decades of Excel habits, using Formula Bar at top.

• Pop-ups, while typing (suggestions, option selection, etc.), display on top of toolbar, making click/select errors – that clear all content from formula/data entry field – inevitable.

• Enlarging the Formula Bar covers bottom (typically more important) rows of spreadsheet, + makes them trickier to access.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Excel | For business | Android

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  1. Anonymous
    2022-06-11T07:21:00+00:00

    I thought this was the reason, if wrong, then I'm wrong,

    then there is no way around it, Excel for Android will stay with Formula bar at the bottom until Microsoft changes that.

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  2. Anonymous
    2022-06-11T06:06:34+00:00

    WRONG!!

    Automatic updates ARE turned off, so that scenario didn't happen.

    It also doesn't explain how with 3 phones in the household, all with the formula bar at the bottom now, and all 3 have different versions of Excel.

    And now you're implying that Microsoft thinks it's a good idea, and purposely put the formula bar at the bottom, when they denied this when we first complained about it, and after decades of it being at the top? Maybe they should read some of the comments at the Google play store.

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  3. Anonymous
    2022-06-11T05:04:04+00:00

    You have the automated update, once you reinstalled it , it was the older version, during the night it has been updated, therefore the new version has the formula bar at the bottom, if you disable the automated update, you will still be on the older version, this will be a trade off, of keeping the formula bar at the top with older version or update it and have the most updated version (currently the formula bar at the bottom).

    Hope that helps!

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  4. Anonymous
    2022-06-10T21:59:54+00:00

    My situation/problems described in exact words in your first paragraph. I should be grateful to find a way to return the formula bar to the top

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  5. Anonymous
    2022-06-10T18:37:23+00:00

    Use older version. its workd for me 😎

    Can you please provide the site and actual APK that was used? I've tried a couple, and keep getting a message that that package appears to be invalid.

    It depends on what phone or device you have, and you'll need to make sure you have Permissions enabled that allows for installing APKs.

    I had to try multiple old APKs before finally coming across the June 19th, 2021 APK (version 16.0.14131.20166) where the formula bar is back on top. This worked on both my Pixel 3a XL and my Pixel 5a. For both of my phones, I chose the "arm64-v8a Android 8.0+ nodpi" version. Here is a link to the June 2021 APKs. https://www.apkmirror.com/apk/microsoft-corporation/excel/excel-16-0-14131-20166-release/#downloads

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