What you need to know
- Microsoft has launched a new Microsoft Teams for Education app in preview.
- It should be rolling out to all EDU customers by mid-July.
- The new experience will ship to Mac and web users later this year.
Earlier this year, Microsoft launched Teams 2.0 in preview on Windows. The app will become the default version of Teams once it reaches feature parity with Teams "classic." It is also expected to ship in preview to macOS, the web, and other platforms later this year.
And now, Microsoft has announced the availability of a new Teams for Education app in preview. The company highlighted that the platform's redesign was prompted by the feedback it received from its users. The redesign will help enhance the app's speed, performance, and flexibility.
Here are some of the new features and changes in the new Teams for Education, as listed by Microsoft:
- Up to 2X faster, whether you’re launching the app, joining meetings, or switching chats or channels
- Up to 50% less memory and disk space utilization; lower CPU usage.
- Seamlessly collaborate across multiple organizations or accounts, ensuring no disruption to your workflow
- More reliable, improved security and better manageability – using trusted types, stringent CSPs, and integration with MSIX
Microsoft has already started rolling out the new experience to EDU customers. It will be available for everyone by mid-July, though it's currently limited to Windows users only. The company has indicated that it will be shipping to Mac and Web users later this year.
It's worth noting that the features in the classic Teams app will be rolling out to the new Teams experience in phases. As such, you may not be able to immediately access all the features you're used to. Microsoft has indicated that most of these features will be part of the current release.
In the meantime, Microsoft has indicated that it will continue pushing more updates to the new Teams before announcing its broad availability.
You'll know the new Teams experience is available when the Try the new Teams toggle appears at the top left corner of the Teams desktop app. The toggle is turned off by default, you'll therefore need to click on the toggle to switch to the new Teams experience. Users will click the Get it now button to download and install the new Teams.
And finally, Microsoft has made it easier for users to revert to classic Teams. All you need to do is to click on the Try the new Teams toggle. In other Teams-related news, Microsoft recently listed all the new features it added to the platform in June, including customizable captions and more.
