As Microsoft looks to the future, “One Outlook” is a vision of how its email and calendar application will evolve. Notably, most of this includes a controversial shift from dedicated Mac and Windows applications to a platform-based web-based application.
Outlook for Mac turning to web application
Reported by Windows Central, Microsoft’s move is to simplify Outlook so that it is just a product that works on all devices. The effort is codenamed “Project Monarch” and will offer the same UI and design, no matter if you are accessing via Mac, Windows or the web.
The Windows Central report notes that the new web-based Outlook will have “a much smaller footprint and will be accessible to all users, whether they are free Outlook consumers or business customers.”
Even though it is a universal web application, it appears that Microsoft is planning to include native integrations for Mac and Windows, such as sharing, offline storage and notifications.
I understand that one of Microsoft’s goals is to make the new Monarch client look as native as possible to the operating system, while remaining universal across platforms, basing the application on the Outlook website.
This goal makes sense given that Microsoft just launched the new Outlook for Mac that was redesigned for macOS Big Sur in October and then updated it with M1 Mac support in December.
Timeline for the new Outlook
When it comes to how long this transition will take, Windows Central says that a preview of the new Outlook web application will be released “later this year” and that it could replace Mac and Windows applications “sometime in 2022 ”. However, with the timeline far away, the report notes that Microsoft’s plans may change.
What will the new Outlook look like?
If you are wondering what the new Outlook will look like, the report says to check the existing Outlook web application. With this tip, Mac users are likely to lose some of the Big Sur talent that Microsoft has in the current version of Outlook for Mac.
9to5Mac socket
This change can be controversial for all users who prefer to use a native application. And that may be more the case than ever with Apple’s M1 Macs finding their way into the mainstream and users enjoying optimized Mac applications.
But, on the other hand, Gmail has conditioned us to use web-based email for years and it’s understandable that Microsoft is looking for some efficiency with Outlook. As highlighted in the image above, it hopes to bring faster innovation with this change.
My opinion is that many of Outlook probably use it because of work and that there may not be much preference involved here. Personally, I still prefer to stick with native Mac applications. It will be interesting to see how this is received by the masses.
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Image via Windows Central
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