Last year, Microsoft launched the personal version of Microsoft Teams, allowing users with a free Microsoft account to use the app to communicate with friends and family. The company has now announced that these personal features are now generally available for desktop, mobile, and web users when signing in a with a personal Microsoft account (these features won’t appear when logging in with a work or school account).
“From online calls that will make you feel like you’re in the same place as your loved ones to group chats that will make coordinating plans with your loved ones a breeze, these personal features in Teams are designed to bring you closer to the people you care about so that you can call, chat, plan, and organize things big and small—together in one place,” explained Liat Ben-Zur, CVP of Modern Life, Search, and Devices.
Microsoft is also launching a couple of features that are now out of preview and generally available on desktop and mobile. Microsoft Teams for consumers will let people participate in a group chat, video call, and share documents, locations, and calendars easily within the app. Keep in mind that the chat via SMS functionality is currently supported in limited countries, and the company is taking a gradual approach to rollout this feature to other markets.
Microsoft Teams for consumers also introduces new live emoji reactions and GIFs for video calls and meetings with my friends and family. Personal users can now enable Together mode, a feature that puts all participants in a shared virtual space. This capability helps to reduce meeting fatigue, and it is already available for business users. Additionally, Microsoft Teams is adding a polling feature for personal users. However, this update will be available “in the coming weeks.”
Microsoft Teams recently crossed 145 million daily active users, and the general availability of personal features will enable people to use a single app for personal and work life. “We’re so excited that Microsoft Teams, which so many of us have come to rely on at work, can now help people connect and get things done with their family and friends. We can’t wait to hear your feedback and look forward to delivering more features over time,” the company said today.
To try out these new personal features, you will need to sign in with your personal Microsoft account on the web or the Teams desktop and mobile apps.
