After launching as a public preview earlier this year, Microsoft has officially launched the new version of its Teams online meetings and collaboration app for Windows and Mac desktop platforms.
In a blog post, Microsoft noted the improvements it has added to the Teams app since its public preview launch in March:
New Teams now has full feature parity for almost all features including custom line-of-business apps, third-party apps, breakout rooms, 7x7 video, call queues, PSTN calling, contextual search in chats and channels, cross-post a channel conversation, and more. We have focused on providing high-quality performance and enhancing the basics in areas such as reliability, security, and IT management to make sure that new Teams meets the evolving requirements of your organization.
The new Microsoft Teams app has been promoted by the company as a major revamp from the ground up. It says the new app launches twice as fast as the older app, and also people can enter meetings twice as fast. It is also supposed to use less memory and disc space. At the same time, the new Teams app also has a simplified user interface with more personalisation options.
Microsoft also says that the new Teams app will work with its Copilot generative AI assistant:
Copilot in Teams chat helps you get up to speed on conversations by quickly reviewing the main points, action items, and decisions without having to scroll through long threads. You can unlock your meeting productivity by using Copilot in Teams meetings to summarize key discussion points—including who said what and where people are aligned or disagree—and suggest action items, all in real time during a meeting.
The Classic Teams app can be turned into the new Teams app by clicking on the toggle at the upper left corner of the app. Microsoft says that the Classic Teams app will automatically be updated to the new Teams version in the coming months.
Enterprise customers should start seeing the new Teams toggle in the Classic Teams app, and a full update schedule for those users is available at Microsoft"s support page.