Microsoft has been beta testing changes to the user interface for many of the aspects of Outlook.com for a little while now. In the coming weeks, you will be able to see the results of these beta tests and some revamped features within Outlook.com Microsoft announced this week.
Some of the new/changed features include:
- Mail—A fresh new look of the Mail experience! You’ll get a speedier performance, improved Skype integration, new ways to access your favorite add-ins—such as Boomerang, Evernote, and PayPal—and easier ways to categorize and filter your emails.
- Calendar—All Outlook.com users can now try out new beta experiences in the Calendar. This includes a more responsive interface, the ability to add an event in just a few clicks, and icons to help you identify your events faster.
- People—You can also try out beta experiences in the People section of Outlook.com, including a new look, quicker access to your favorite people, and easier ways to view, edit, and create contacts.
The new Skype integration into the platform promises to make initiating chats with email contacts much easier. Just select the person you want to talk to from your email inbox and your conversation appears in its own chat window. This will certainly make following up on email messages much quicker, as you can send a quick note or question, or have a conversation about the email right away so it doesn’t get forgotten later.
Email inboxes have a tendency to be a wild west free for all. Our Inboxes are overflowing with mail. Some of which is important, and most of which is trash. Outlook.com has now improved their inbox category organization. According to the announcement, now you can assign a name and color to each category and apply multiple categories to a single message, for those situations when emails belong in many buckets. Filtering messages by category is now easier than ever—just type the category name in the search bar or add a favorite category to the very top of your left sidebar and your most important messages will be one click away.
With all the changes in Mail, it might be exciting for you to check out the potential changes in the Calendar and People. To try out the beta, you can opt-in by switching the Try the beta toggle on the top right of your inbox.
