Back in April, we wrote an article about how system admins and IT admins feel about the New Outlook for Windows app. If you missed it, here"s a refresher: the majority feel that Microsoft"s new application is not good enough as many agreed with the take that it is "hot garbage."
However, Microsoft would beg to differ; the company has published a new blog post about the new features that are coming to New Outlook. In the post, Microsoft has also mentioned about how the "new agile codebase" and the app"s "design" (ahem!) makes it better for "stability, performance and security", and how the New Outlook has features that were never there on the classic app. It writes:
Outlook for Windows" new agile codebase has made it easier for stability, performance and security by design. We deliver features that were never implemented in classic Outlook.
Now, you can enjoy top-requested features in Outlook like pinning important emails, tabbed search to find people, files and Teams messages more easily, iCal sync, scheduled mail, new themes and colored mailbox folders, and more.
In other words, the tech giant clearly disagrees with those who continue praising the classic application.
While the points raised by Microsoft about performance are subjective, to their credit, there is certainly truth to the statement. Recently, classic Outlook has broken multiple times.
For example, Microsoft pushed a big Calendar-related feature upgrade which bugged out the classic Outlook app in several different ways. And more recently, we reported on how opening and sending an email, which is the most basic function of a mail app, now causes it to crash.
Now coming to the new features Microsoft talks about today, first up, it mentions an upgrade to the Shared mailbox experience and the new “Shared with me” page that lets users "view permissions on shared folders or mailboxes to identify and resolve access issues."
Microsoft also mentions Copilot in the app and how it will keep "adding Copilot features into Outlook every month" to help improve user productivity. Some of these features include "Chat side pane, Summarize, Drafts, Schedule from email, and more" as well as features like "Prioritize my Inbox" for commercial users.
Microsoft also mentions offline and PST (Outlook data/personal storage table) additions that are continuing to improve. The company is right in this regard as it recently confirmed another new offline feature for New Outlook. And PST file support is also here.
When it comes to working across devices, Microsoft also highlights how switching between devices is much improved. It adds how "thanks to the common codebase, web users also enjoy most of the innovations and classic capabilities arriving in Outlook for Windows."
Finally, Microsoft expresses what it feels is the best way forward for users who still use the classic Outlook app to move to New Outlook and explains why it is best if you spend the most time on the newer app:
The transition to Outlook for Windows is intended to be gradual, allowing you ample time to explore and become comfortable with its new capabilities. We recommend using the toggle in classic Outlook to try the updated Outlook for Windows experience. This will copy your settings, forward your protocols, and provide a welcoming experience.
....
we encourage you to spend as much time as possible working in the updated Outlook experience. This will help you fully experience its enhanced capabilities and discover new, efficient ways of communicating.
You can view the blog post here on Microsoft"s official Tech Community website.
Is Microsoft right? Did you move to New Outlook yet, or are you holding on to Classic Outlook? Let us know in the comments.