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Introducing Outlook.com - Modern Email for the Next Billion Mailboxes

blogs.office.com

81–90 of 341 posts

Re: Introducing Outlook.com - Modern Email for the Next Billion Mailboxes

#81
post #17

The reason Outlook is the world's most used mail client is because people are often forced to use it to access their company email. While anecdotal, I don't know a single person that uses outlook because they choose to. However, hopefully, outlook.com can introduce some innovation in the space, although, I'm skeptical as I am with most Microsoft 'innovation.'

I know a good few people that willingly use Outlook, including ones who use it for their Gmail account. Its actually pretty good at being e-mail PLUS calendar PLUS tasks, and so on. Google still haven't got that yet IMO, by virtue of "Google Calendar" and "Google Mail" being two separate products.

Google Calendar is completely integrated with Google Mail in every way outlook is.

I didn't realize this myself, either, until I started working at an employer that uses the Google Apps stack for all things corporate.

Re: Introducing Outlook.com - Modern Email for the Next Billion Mailboxes

#82

Google is asleep at the wheel. This makes them look bad. Gmail blew the doors off every other webmail client when it launched 5 years ago but it's time for a rewrite. The fact that they used Gmail mobile as their "Gmail Offline" product in Chrome tells me that the current client can't be modernized. I only hope that is what the Sparrow guys are going to be working on, because Microsoft isn't the company you would exp…

outlook.com's DOCTYPE:

    

Re: Introducing Outlook.com - Modern Email for the Next Billion Mailboxes

#83

More interesting that this is a Microsoft project and they are hosting their videos from YouTube. Haven't they built their own video streaming service?

Why should they? It is good that they are embracing youtube rather than try to start promoting something of their own.

Re: Introducing Outlook.com - Modern Email for the Next Billion Mailboxes

#84
post #9
post #6

The promo video heralds it as email without 'creepy ads', but I signed up and without doing anything it displays 5 ads from restaurants in my town.

It can pull that off without reading your mail, which has been Microsoft's primary marketing complaint re Gmail.

It's still copying strings and passing them between functions, which is still a type of "reading" if you want to play by the fast and loose definitions of Microsoft's marketing teams.

Re: Introducing Outlook.com - Modern Email for the Next Billion Mailboxes

#85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I came here to also complain about the CAPTCHA. I almost gave up after the 4th try but I really wanted to see what this was all about. I don't know what they are thinking with that monstrosity.

it is likely the email id you are trying to use is already taken up. If you scroll up a bit, there may a error mark near the email field (I had this issue and but was trying to change the captcha).

The first couple of times I tried the error message wasn't even being shown, but when I changed the username it worked.

Re: Introducing Outlook.com - Modern Email for the Next Billion Mailboxes

#86
post #39

Just tried it out and from my initial experience gotta say this isn't bad. The UI feels pretty clean and easy to read (which I always found to be an issue with gmails web interface). Doesn't look like you can use IMAP with it though so I doubt I will use it for my main email address anytime soon.

I sort of disagree. The UI is clean but things aren't where you expect them to be and it makes it confusing. For instance, I didn't know where to put the subject when I was sending my first email -- it's huge but it's weirdly placed and unintuitive. I also couldn't find the Send button at first because it's on the Nav bar -- not where I expected. I also agree with the post below re: branding. I went to "Help" to see…

I agree 'send' could be better placed but the subject line is pretty obvious and placed where I would expect it. The 'to' field seems badly placed to me.

Re: Introducing Outlook.com - Modern Email for the Next Billion Mailboxes

#88
So I need to give my phone number to send an email or solve a captcha ?

I go for the captcha. 20 tries, no luck. Let's try audio. Impossible.

[EDIT] And now, a really funny one I just got :

  We've noticed some unusual activity in your Outlook account. To help protect you and
  everyone else, we've temporarily blocked your account.
  To unblock it, please {0}.
Well, alright, I'll {0}.

http://i.imgur.com/auM4J.png

Re: Introducing Outlook.com - Modern Email for the Next Billion Mailboxes

#89
post #51

Nice UI, very light and simple, seems to be running fast even on my netbook. I guess I will start to use my 15 year old hotmail account again, good to finally have an alternative to Gmail. Only one thing: Microsoft, I know its really chiq and en-vogue nowadays to have some element with position:fixed; on every page, but please: don't! There is no reason whatsoever why I would want to see all the time the titlebar. I…

position:fixed is to make it more app like. Outlook on the desktop (and pretty much every other desktop app) works the same way, if you scroll down your inbox the menu bar doesn't go away.

Re: Introducing Outlook.com - Modern Email for the Next Billion Mailboxes

#90
post #77

I just signed up and the first thing I see is a bar of bing ads selling me $500 TVs or something. On my gmail (I just checked) I don't even see an ad (does web clip count?). You'd think a billion dollar tech company can afford not to force product on me. The second thing I see is, wow, this looks really nice. But, that was the second thing, first I felt like I was at Best Buy. I don't have a TV and I don't even want…

That's because gmail ads typically are not on the mainpage, but they are there when you read individual emails (in the side bar).
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