No more problems for Mac users who prefer to continue using Outlook, the email manager developed by Microsoft. The Redmond-based tech company just announced that consumers can now use Outlook for free on macOS, without the need for a Microsoft 365 subscription or license.

“Whether at home, work or school, Mac users can easily add Outlook.com, Gmail, iCloud, Yahoo! or IMAP accounts in Outlook and experience the best mail and calendar application on macOS”, says the American company in its blog.

With this measure, Microsoft seeks to remove the subscription barrier and attract Mac users accustomed to using Apple Mail, the email included by Apple in its macOS, iOS and watchOS operating systems. And he takes advantage of the operation of his manager: “The Outlook for Mac application complements Outlook for iOS, providing people with a consistent, reliable and powerful experience that brings the best Outlook experience in its class to the Apple ecosystem that so many love.”

In addition to supporting most personal email providers, Microsoft advertises “powerful” features like seeing all your inboxes at once and a search across all mailboxes to make it easy to manage multiple email accounts. .

As the technology explains, when the user logs in, “they get enterprise-level security, with secure login to authenticate and protect their identity, all while keeping their email, calendar, contacts, and files protected.” The server image has also been redesigned, to achieve a more “modern, native and optimized” image.

Microsoft says the improvements go far beyond the skin: “The new Outlook is optimized for Apple Silicon, with snappy performance and faster synchronization speeds than previous versions.” For example, to help keep track of email and calendar while using other apps, the user will be able to view their schedule using a widget and view reminders in the ‘Notification Center’. It also works on a preview of upcoming calendar events in the menu bar.

Coming soon, new Outlook profiles will allow you to connect email accounts to Apple’s Focus experience. “With Outlook profiles, you won’t receive unwanted notifications at the wrong time so you can focus on that important work email, without distractions from your personal email,” the multinational continues.

In addition, Microsoft has included a feature called Handoff, with which the user can pick up tasks where they left off between iOS and Mac devices, such as writing an email.

It is not the only change that Microsoft prepares for Outlook. The company is finalizing the deployment of ChatGPT, OpenAI technology, and the Prometheus model in Office applications such as Word, PowerPoint and Outlook and in Teams, a novelty that it plans to detail in the coming weeks, as sources close to these have indicated. plans to The Verge.

This is the same technology that will power the new versions of Bing and Edge, which will allow for the addition of enhanced features with “richer” responses, a new chat experience, and the ability to generate content.