A couple of weeks ago, we reported about new offline features Microsoft has been working on for OneDrive. The improvement is intended to allow users to carry out certain tasks even without an internet connection. Although we do not have all the details of this upcoming feature, it seems to be different from the currently available OneDrive sync app, as it appears to be a solution involving the web. Offline OneDrive was among the several other features we noted on our Microsoft 365 roadmap weekly.
Microsoft is now working on offline support for the new Outlook for Windows as well, which was recently released to the public. This is one of the several new features Microsoft had in store for us for the 23H2 feature update but has instead been released early.
On the Microsoft 365 roadmap, under the feature ID 178030, Microsoft has added this new item which will allow users to view mail, calendar events, and contacts as they will be stored offline locally on your device automatically. Additionally, mail actions like composing, flagging, moving, and deleting will work too.
The feature was added earlier today and it is set to start rolling out next month. On the description of the new item it says:
Outlook: The new Outlook for Windows - Offline support for mail actions and compose
The first set of offline capabilities in the new Outlook for Windows. Mail, calendar events, and contacts will be stored on your device, so you can view them even when you"re not connected to the internet. Additionally, you can perform key actions on your mail, including flag, move, and delete, and compose messages, to stay productive even when you"re not connected to the internet.
The option will be a welcome addition since Microsoft 365 services including Outlook often experience outages, with the most recent one being earlier this month.