Microsoft’s Outlook and email programs on Windows, Mac and the Internet are undergoing some major changes in the coming months as part of the “One Outlook” business. But why do you have to wait? You can now get a preview of what will change your Outlook experience.
Later this year, you can expect Microsoft to standardize the user experience in the Outlook applications on Mac, Windows, and the Internet, as well as the Mail & Calendar apps on Windows 10. Then, in 2022, each of these apps will switch to a new “Monarch” client, which means you’ll be using the same app across all platforms.
According to Windows Central, Microsoft says the new Monarch client will add more OS-level integration for Windows and Mac, including “offline storage, share targets, notifications”, so the new Outlook will feel like a native application on every desktop operating system or web browser what you use. .
Implementation for these changes will be slow, but you can get a preview of the new platform interface by installing the new Mail Progressive Web App (PWA) today.
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How to install Outlook PWA on Edge Chromium:
- Go to outlook.com.
- Click on “…” open menu
- Go to Apps, click “Install this site as an app.”
- The PWA will open once the installation is complete.
On Google Chrome:
- Open outlook.com in a new tab.
- Click on the “+” to the right of the URL bar (this may take a few moments to appear. Try clicking on the URL bar if it does not appear).
- Click on “Install” when asked.
Compared to the email and calendar programs on Windows 10, the appearance of Outlook PWA is much simpler. It does not have the visual customization options you can use to customize Outlook in wild ways, but it is much cleaner and includes the same email features as well as calendar and to-do list views. The agreement should make the transition to the PWA – or finally the new UI for the various Outlook and Mail programs later this year – much easier.
The Outlook PWA also includes easily accessible shortcuts to other MS applications such as Word, OneDrive, One Note, Meet and Skype. You can even manage your Xbox Live and Skype accounts from the profile settings if they use the same email address.
It’s already a much more robust surface integration into MS’s ecosystem, and I’m curious to see how it expands once Monarch launches in 2022.