Late last week, Microsoft informed customers of its Microsoft 365 program that it planned to start replacing the current Windows Mail and Calendar apps with the new Outlook app in September 2024. Now it looks like the company is backtracking on that plan, at least for the moment.
Twitter user Michael Reinders posted a screenshot of the updated post from the Microsoft 365 Message Center that stated:
We are reevaluating the timing and implementation of this change and will provide information shortly. Thank you for your patience.
Reinders indicated in other replies to this post that a number of Microsoft 365 customers complained about when this change would be made. On the face of it, this seems like a strange thing to complain about, as Microsoft was giving users well over a year before this transition was supposed to take place.
There's some speculation that the transition date to the new Outlook to September 2024 could be a clue that Microsoft also intends to launch Windows 12, which could have Outlook as the default mail and calendar app, in that time frame as well. However, there's no direct evidence that this is indeed the case.
In any event, It does look like Microsoft has received enough complaints about getting rid of Mail and Calendar apps to the new Outlook that we may be getting a new transition date soon that may push that September 2024 timeline behind by several months, if not longer.
Microsoft has already stated that once the move from Mail and Calendar apps to the new Outlook is made, those older apps won't be available to download anymore. They have also said that the new Outlook will let users access any email account without needing a Microsoft 365 paid subscription. The recently updated Outlook app for Mac is completely free to use already.
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