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Microsoft Outlook update wants to boost the hybrid working spirit

December 15, 2021
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Keeping track of your team in this new hybrid working age should soon be more straightforward thanks to a new update to Microsoft Outlook.

The email service is working on a new feature that it says will allow workers more flexibility and efficiency when working away from the office.

According to an entry in the Microsoft 365 roadmap, the update, simply entitled “working hours and location” will allow users to set a notice showing where they are working, whether that be at home, in the office, or anywhere else in particular.

Flexible working

“New working hours and location options in Outlook lets people set more flexible working hours each day and specify the location from where they plan to work,” the roadmap entry adds.

The update is scheduled for general availability for all Web Outlook users across the globe, with a targeted release date of June 2022.

The news does mean that Outlook is finally catching up to some of its rivals when it comes to having flexible working-linked tools enabled.

Google Calendar launched a similar feature in August 2021, allowing users to highlight exactly where they would be working, with the options of home, office, or a specific other location.

Users can also create a weekly working location routine if they plan on going into the office on certain days and working remotely on others, which can be updated at any time if plans change. There was no information as to whether Microsoft's Outlook update will do the same, but we're hopeful it will.

In July, Google Calendar also added an option that allows users to specify whether they would be attending a meeting in-person or virtually using video conferencing software.

Outlook has released a number of updates recently as it looks to maintain its place as a leading email service for users across the world. Most intriguingly, the company says it is working on a tool that will help users eliminate mistakes from their messages with the launch of spelling and grammar checks for its Outlook on mobile platform.

To further boost your efficiency, check out our lists of the best productivity tools, best office software and best collaboration tools.

TechRadar – All the latest technology news

December 6, 2021
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Avoiding embarrassing meeting snafus could soon be a lot easier thanks to a long-awaited new update from Microsoft 365.

The software suite has revealed that users will finally be able to specify where and how they will be attending meetings using its Outlook email service.

Going forward, Outlook users will now be able to specify whether they will attend a meeting in-person or online.

Outlook RSVP

Microsoft says this feature will be useful not just for the workers, but also for those planning meetings, who can best prepare by booking a room with video conferencing resources or bringing an external speaker.

The update was first revealed back in September 2021 as part of a larger hybrid working push by Microsoft, but the company has now said the tool is finally set to begin rolling out soon. It is marked as general availability, meaning all Outlook and Exchange users should be able to access it upon release.

The update comes a number of weeks after Google announced an identical feature for Gmail, as Google Calendar users are now able to specify whether they will be attending a meeting either virtually or in-person in their email RSVP.

The function had initially been added to Google Calendar back in July 2021 during the initial hybrid working peak, with Google noting this would, “help meeting attendees know what to expect when joining a meeting, and prepare accordingly.”

Ironically given today's news, Google's RSVP options are not shared with contacts on other platforms, such as Microsoft Outlook.

Google Calendar also recently launched a “Focus time” feature that allows users to block out periods of time where they can avoid meetings and get their heads down for actual work.

Setting such a marker in your Google Calendar will also allow users to automatically decline meetings, meaning no last-minute rush to finish off work.

Need extra help? These are the best calendar apps around

TechRadar – All the latest technology news

December 1, 2021
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Small businesses will now be able to utilise video conferencing software and online collaboration tool much easier with the launch of the first ever stand-alone version of Microsoft Teams.

Available now, Teams Essentials provides small businesses with an affordable meeting solution that is ideal for hybrid work environments. At just $ 4 per user per month, the software giant's new offering is one of the most competitively priced video conferencing and collaboration solutions on the market today.

“We know how difficult the past 20 months have been for small businesses,” noted Microsoft's corporate vice president of Modern Work, Jared Spataro. “They’ve had to demonstrate extreme flexibility to adapt, often with limited access to tools and technology. Teams Essentials is built specifically to meet the unique needs of small businesses, enabling them to thrive in this new era of work.”

Microsoft Teams Essentials

SMBs that sign up for Teams Essentials will be able to hold unlimited group meetings for up to 30 hours and meetings with up to 300 people but they'll also get access to 10GB of cloud storage per user.

Teams Essentials also includes all of the existing and upcoming capabilities available in the free version of Teams such as easy invitations that only require an email address, Outlook Calendar and Google Calendar integration, virtual backgrounds, Together mode, always-available chats, polls and more.

Small businesses interested in purchasing Teams Essentials subscriptions for their employees can do so directly through the Teams website or from a variety of Microsoft Cloud Partners including ALSO, Crayon, Ingram, Pax8, Rhipe, TD Synnex, Telefonica (ES), Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone (IT) and Wortmann AG.

While Teams Essentials makes sense for small businesses that want to continue using their existing office software, for just $ 1 more at $ 5 per user per month, they can sign up for Microsoft 365 Business Basic which also includes access to the web and mobile versions of Microsoft's Office apps, 1TB of cloud storage per user, business-class email, Teams meetings recordings with transcripts and more.

Looking to improve your video calls? Check out our roundups of the best video conferencing software, best business webcams and best headsets for conference calls

TechRadar – All the latest technology news

November 16, 2021
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Showing up alone to an in-person meeting could soon be a thing of the past thanks to a new Gmail update.

With workers across the world slowly returning to office life (if they haven't adopted hybrid working of course) physical meetings are unfortunately becoming more common once again.

But as many workforces balance home and office working, this can lead to confusion about who will actually be at a meeting in-person, and who will be there virtually – something Gmail and Google Calendar now hope to have fixed.

RSVP in Gmail

Going forward, Gmail users will now be able to specify whether they will be attending a meeting either virtually or in-person in their email RSVP.

The function had initially been added to Google Calendar back in July 2021, but is now available within Gmail RSVPs for extra functionality. Users will now see a drop-down arrow next to the “Yes” option in a meeting invite where they can select “Yes”, “Yes, in a meeting room” and “Yes, joining virtually” choices.

RSVP in Gmail — (Image credit: Google Workspace)

“With these RSVP options, you can indicate how you plan to join a meeting—in the meeting room, or virtually,” a Google Workspace blog announcing the feature noted. “Then, both the organizer and guests will be able to see how attendees are planning to attend the meeting in the event detail. This will help meeting attendees know what to expect when joining a meeting, and prepare accordingly.”

The blog did highlight that the new RSVP options are not shared with contacts on other platforms, such as Microsoft Outlook.

Google says the feature has begun rolling out now, and will be available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers, within the next few weeks.

The news comes shortly after the launch of a new “Focus time” feature in Google Calendar that will allow users to block out periods of time where they can avoid meetings and get their heads down for actual work.

Setting such a marker in your Google Calendar will also allow users to automatically decline meetings, meaning no last-minute rush to finish off work.

Need extra help? These are the best calendar apps around

TechRadar – All the latest technology news

September 13, 2021
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WhatsApp is said to be working on a new voice message transcription. The transcription will be done on-device, or locally, and your voice messages won’t be sent to WhatsApp or Facebook server for getting the transcription.

TechRadar – All the latest technology news