Software
Microsoft Outlook gets the integration of Google Calendar on the cloud
Microsoft has been exploring deeper integrations with Gmail and Google Calendar in Outlook on the web for months, and some of this is coming to Outlook business users today. Outlook users will be able to connect their personal Outlook.com or Google Calendar accounts to an Outlook Work Account so that you can have a clearer view of your availability while scheduling work appointments.
The latest functionality is now being rolled out to all Microsoft 365 customers with a work account, but there is no confirmation that Outlook.com customers will be able to add Gmail and Google Calendar accounts. Microsoft has been researching this functionality for months now, and it appears briefly in some of the Outlook.com accounts.
In addition to Google Calendar integration, some helpful changes are also being made to Outlook on the web. You will now be able to schedule when the emails are sent and get the suggested responses to the emails in Outlook on the web and Outlook mobile. Microsoft is also planning to add recommendations for availability and meeting times to Outlook Mobile to let people know when you're home.
Microsoft is also developing calendar management in Outlook on the web so that you can directly sort your calendar inside the inbox instead of flipping between the Outlook inbox and the calendar pages.
Although Teams are directly integrated with Outlook, Microsoft is also introducing a single button for Zoom and Webex meetings in Outlook Mobile. Cortana's "Play My Emails" feature is also finally coming to Android after it was released on iOS last year.
Many of the enhancements are intended to help make Outlook a little easier to use now that a lot of people work remotely and schedule even more meetings on a regular basis.
