Blog Post

Outlook Blog
6 MIN READ

Outlook in the Apple ecosystem

euburrag's avatar
euburrag
Icon for Microsoft rankMicrosoft
Oct 30, 2019

Microsoft understands that people have choices when it comes to their preferred apps as well as the devices they carry in their pocket. For those who go for Apple devices, we recently introduced Outlook for iOS updates for iOS 13, the WatchOS as well as the iPadOS that takes productivity to a whole new level for scenarios best suited to larger displays.

 

Our goal is for Outlook to be your email and calendar app of choice on your Apple mobile devices. As your trusted organizer, to help balance your time and easily stay on top of what matters, Outlook for iOS is uniquely crafted to make you feel at home on your device of choice. Built for power and simplicity, we continue to carefully design mobile user experiences that are fluid and aligned with the elements core to the device, building upon the native design patterns. 

 

Feel at home on your iPad, iPhone and watch

 

With the launch of iPadOS, Outlook will soon support Split View to help making multitasking easier.  In the coming weeks, you will soon have the ability to open multiple emails at once on your iPad, or even see your email message list and calendar side by side so you can get things done faster. 

 

Outlook on the iPad - Split View

Outlook plans to support multitasking features in the new iPadOS, such as drag and drop too. For example, with a browser open next to an email you’re composing, you will be able to copy text and links by dragging and dropping it into the message with your pen or finger.

 

In August, we rolled out support for Dark Mode on Outlook for iOS and Android and as planned, with iOS 13 and iPadOS, Outlook now automatically switches to Dark Mode based on your iPhone or iPad device settings. Simply update the Outlook settings, under Preferences, and choose the Appearance of your email and calendar between Light, Dark or default to your System settings.

 

Today, we are pleased to also announce that options for Do Not Disturb settings will be rolling out in Outlook for iOS in the coming weeks. You will be able to choose to silence your email notifications when you need to, such as Until Tomorrow, or on a Scheduled basis, such as Evenings or Weekends.  This way you can focus on things other than what’s arriving in your inbox.  This is already available in Outlook for Android. Coming first to Outlook for iOS however, is the option to customize your work hours and work days – who works from 9 to 5 anymore?!

Set Do Not Disturb in Outlook for iOS

 

Properly managed notifications can make or break your ability to honor commitments and be on time. If you’ve chosen the Apple Watch and downloaded Outlook for iOS, you can get your important emails and calendar events at a glance when Outlook is toggled ON in your Apple Watch app. Outlook on the Apple Watch is available today making it easy to see where your meeting is and what it’s about and or who sent you emails at a glance. If you’re using Favorite People in Outlook, you can choose to only get email notifications from your VIPs.  In the event your phone is not on hand, you can quickly browse your inbox to see your latest unread emails or scroll through your calendar to see what’s going on in your entire day – all in one app. And when something pops into mind, Outlook helps you stay organized – just touch Note to self in Outlook on your watch to dictate a quick reminder.  Outlook will email you so it’s at the top of your Focused Inbox when you’re ready to take action on a different device.

 

Apple WatchOS recently introduced additional watch faces, customizable with Outlook complications. So, with a simple touch, you can see where you need to be at a glance or add a shortcut for fast access to your inbox on your watch on the go.

 

Apple watch with Outlook complications

 

 

Did you know that you can set up Siri Shortcuts for Outlook?  Check them out in the Outlook for iOS integration Settings.  You can record personalized shortcuts such “what’s my next meeting” or “I’m running late”; simply ask Siri and you can stay on top of what matters without opening the Outlook app.  At a glance, get up to date or take action from the lock screen even if your device screen is off.  

 

All of these updates are designed to help you feel at home with Outlook on your iPhone, Apple Watch and iPad. Built to help you can get things done faster, with less effort so you get time back in your day.  With Outlook you can take advantage of the new capabilities that Apple recently rolled out in their new operating systems.  

 

Best of Office 365, integrated in one app

 

We continue to deepen the integration between key components of the Office 365 suite and Outlook on Apple devices.  With the intelligent technology from Office Lens, for example, not only can you add digital images directly into your email but now inking in Outlook for iOS will enable you to annotate photos and images for added illustration. 

 

Office Lens in Outlook for iOS with inking

 

Whether you have your photos or files on your device or in the cloud, you can share your most recently used files from Outlook for iOS.  We recently introduced access to your local device files as well as iCloud in the Files app. This means your files and photos, whether in OneDrive for Business, OneDrive, Google Drive, Box, and Dropbox cloud storage are all in one place so you can simply share with those who need to know. Additionally, if you choose to add a link in your email rather than attach a file, access permission will align automatically with those set by your company or those who already have access.

 

Recently used Office 365 documents and quick access to Files

 

But what about the files that are popular among the people close to you in your organization? With Discover, we’ve added a steady feed of documents that you already have access to right in Search in Outlook for iOS.  This can include both documents you may or may not have already glanced at in email but also documents the people you work with collaborate on in other Office 365 apps. This way you can quickly find the documents that are relevant to you, no need to search email or reach out to someone for the content you need.

Discover Office 365 documents in Search

People are at the center of your daily life – and it’s your professional connections that help you get things done.  We’re starting to roll out the ability to connect your Microsoft Account to your LinkedIn account in Outlook for iOS. If you want to connect to them professionally, simply select a match and pivot directly into LinkedIn to see their full connect and see their full profile.  Once your accounts are connected, whether you do that through iOS or Outlook on the web or Outlook for Windows, you will be able to see potential matches in the contact card in Outlook.  Outlook helps you connect with people so you can continue to expand your professional network, enables you to read up about them and perhaps help you be more prepared for your next meeting with them!

 

Connect with your Favorite People with LinkedIn in Outlook

Our final update to share here is tailored for those of you who use folders to keep your email organized.  If you move certain emails to designated folders repeatedly, Outlook will learn your  preferences and suggest folders to help you quickly move your messages to the right spot. If we’re not sure, Outlook won’t suggest anything but if you frequently move messages from you’re office mate or your personal trainer to specific folders, for example, the next time you might just be pleasantly surprised that Outlook suggests that folder for you. Just so you can quickly take action and get on with your day.    

 

If you choose Apple devices, we hope you love these Outlook updates and choose Outlook for iOS as your preferred email and calendar app. With your email, calendar, and Office 365 documents in one secure app on your Apple device of choice, Outlook is more than an inbox.

 

But what about the Mac?  We love Mac devices too. Please join us in Orlando in November at Microsoft Ignite and check out all the  updates coming to Outlook for Mac as well as exciting news about what’s next in Outlook. Please continue to give us feedback at Outlook.uservoice.com or send feedback from Help and Feedback in the app. 

 

Updated Mar 30, 2020
Version 2.0
  • shagele's avatar
    shagele
    Copper Contributor

    I really wish that Outlook for iOS had a yearly view calendar where I could see an entire year on my screen at one time.  I currently use Outlook for my monthly view and then switch to the Apple Calendar to get the yearly view.

  • HaroldvandeKamp's avatar
    HaroldvandeKamp
    Bronze Contributor

    Thanks for the recent Outlook complications for the Apple watch, just what I was looking for.

  • Jegesmaci's avatar
    Jegesmaci
    Copper Contributor

    I am very excited about these upcoming features. I use the Office Apps in my iPad Pro and iPhone every single day. THANK YOU for focusing on improving these apps!!!!

  • bbhorrigan's avatar
    bbhorrigan
    Brass Contributor

    Good write up. One of the challenges my company is having right now is the move and process to get from Native mail to Outlook on iOS. I am looking forward to more feature parity to the PC client.

  • Zereta's avatar
    Zereta
    Copper Contributor

    These changes are gonna be phenomenal. The biggest limitation for me in terms of working from iOS is lack of Outlook multitasking with iPadOS. Glad to see all that being addressed.

     

    Looks like after this update,. The only feature missing would be to be able to see which main folders sub folders belong to when I try moving emails. When I type in Scheduling, for example, all I see are a bunch of sub folders with Scheduling in their name, and not the main folder they belong to, making moving clunkier than expected.

     

    You guys are doing an amazing job with this app. I really appreciate the work!

  • Tom_Leonard's avatar
    Tom_Leonard
    Copper Contributor

     

    Outlook for iOS

    Would be nice to get rid of the "Read More" button for long newsletter emails.  

  • PFPTKyd's avatar
    PFPTKyd
    Copper Contributor

    It’s mid-January and still haven’t seen SPlit Screen support hit iPadOS yet.  Any idea when this new feature will be available?

  • PastorJason666's avatar
    PastorJason666
    Copper Contributor

    I love Outlook, but it would really help to be able to have separate shortcuts on ios for calendar and mail

  • Brendtw's avatar
    Brendtw
    Copper Contributor

    All these feature are great, but Outlook still lacks fundamental features that make or break it for use.

    1. No notifications for subfolders

    2. No HTML signature support

     

    how can a email client, especially from Microsoft not support these basic features.