MICROSOFT

Microsoft Teams will be integrated into Outlook

Soon, Outlook users will be able to send instant messages to their contacts in Microsoft Teams, without having to open the application. Microsoft is trying to associate the two services, but without having to merge them.

Microsoft Teams and Outlook will continue to be separate applications. The first is dedicated to videoconferencing and chat, while the second is the eternal Redmond company mailbox. Soon, the two will be able to communicate with each other, and almost perfectly.

Concretely, this means that if one of your contacts is in Teams and you are in Outlook, and you want to send him a message, you won't need to open the other application. All you need to do is do it directly through your mailbox.

This is a way to streamline the experience and not have a large number of open applications. Note that a Microsoft Teams extension already allows you to do this, but it is not integrated by default.

At the moment, we don't know when this functionality will arrive on our PCs, but Micosoft has already included this possibility in its roadmap. Once deployed, it will be possible to chat directly in Outlook opened in a browser. More than chats, Microsoft plans to allow users to merge their calendars.

All this is furiously reminiscent of what Google has been doing for a long time with its services. The Mountain View company is careful to converge all its applications to offer a unified and practical user experience. Microsoft's stated goal is to do the same. A big step had already been taken with the launch of Windows 11, the new operating system that wants to go in that direction. For example, it is essential to enter your Microsoft account to start it and thus have access to all your data and preferences.

mundophone