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New Outlook is terrible

Anonymous
2025-03-27T08:18:00+00:00

On my computers, there is a toggle in the upper right corner that says "Try the new Outlook". I have switched on that toggle once on one of my private computers.

It was a disaster as the Outlook app switched to a de-populated version of Outlook that looks identical to the web-based version of Outlook. I switched back immediately.

Now, a month ago, I was helping a friend who had purchased a new and expensive Microsoft Surface Pro Copilot+ PC with a Snapdragon X Elite CPU.

We started up his PC and activated the Microsoft 365 suite of apps incl Outlook. But the Outlook version that was installed was the "New Outlook" by default and there was not even an option to revert back to the classic, fully featured Outlook.

After extensive searching, I found a solution to re-install Microsoft 365 as described here and get Classic Outlook back:
You can't open classic Outlook on a new Windows PC - Microsoft Support

I simply don't understand what Microsoft want to acheive. It's quite clear to me that they are slowly but aggressively demoting classic Outlook, which is great and used at most enterprises, for an aggressively dumbed down version of Outlook that is lacking many features that end-users expect and need.

There is only one obvious option: Offer both versions to end-users and maintain and continue to update classic Outlook indefinitely. If Microsoft is so convinced about the merits of New Outlook, offer it in parallel for those users that only need a basic mail client. It is worrisome to see the path Microsoft is taking now.

Outlook | Windows | New Outlook for Windows | For home

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  1. Anonymous
    2025-05-31T16:31:58+00:00

    Here are my biggest frustrations. If someone has found a solution to them please let me know.

    • Contact cards are gone. I don't remember everyone's name, so I need their titles shown so that I know who to go to. Now it's just a list of people, and I need to look at every contact to find the one that does the job I'm looking for.
    • You lose your "spot" on your selected email when you change the sort. Here's an example: Say I have selected an email from Mike Smith. Now I want to see all emails from Mike Smith. Before, I would click on "From" to sort the emails, and I would still be on Mike Smith, and all of his emails would be there in a list right where I was selected. Now, when you click on "From" to sort the emails, your selection is gone, the list sorts, and you are just viewing the top of the list with no email selected at all. This can usually be solved by clicking on an email and typing the first letter of the person you are looking for, but......
    • You can no longer "jump" to a sorted section of email by pressing letters on the keyboard. For instance, in the old outlook, if you were to sort by "From" and then select a single email and then press the "M" button on the keyboard, you would jump down to the first person who emailed you with a name starting with M. now you can't.
    • The RSVP option is way more complex and terribly designed. It was perfect before. I don't really know how I'm responding to things now. In an invite, there are TWO different Yes/No sections to respond to. One has a check box option to email the organizer, one doesn't. So what happens if the check box is checked, but you respond Yes on the section that doesn't have the check box? WHY ARE THERE EVEN TWO SECTIONS TO RESPOND IN?
    • When you reply, you can't edit the people you are responding to unless you take the extra step of clicking up in the names section to "activate" the open text fields and then you have to click on the section you want to add the name to (CC/BCC/TO)
    • You can't permanently switch back. Every time I restart outlook it goes to the new one. So what was the point of the toggle switch?

    I can't think of a single thing that was improved.

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  2. Anonymous
    2025-05-31T22:08:11+00:00

    Alex, I don't understand why you posted such a long reply without adding any value whatsoever. Sometimes it's better to avoid replying at all.

    Your only attempt at adding value by providing this info was also a miserable mistake as I was never referring to the Mac version of Outlook:

    "Here's the channel for sharing your using experience and suggestions with New Outlook for Mac's engineering team- Contact support and provide feedback in new Outlook for Windows - Microsoft Support".

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  3. Anonymous
    2025-05-26T01:54:19+00:00

    I tried to use it, but something that really bothers me is that there's no way to delete the account. You can manage and deactivate it, but the user account is still there, and every time you click it, it logs in automatically. I don’t want anyone going through my things. Please create a simple way to completely delete the accounts.

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  4. Anonymous
    2025-03-27T09:08:35+00:00

    Hi, Lars Johansson SE

    Good day!

    Thank you for posting to Microsoft Community. We are glad to assist you!

    According to your description, I understand your frustration with the new Outlook experience. It can be quite disheartening when a familiar tool changes in ways that don't meet your needs. Your experience with the toggle and the default installation on the new Surface Pro Copilot+ PC highlights some significant challenges.

    Microsoft's approach to pushing the new Outlook version seems to be part of their broader strategy to unify the user experience across different platforms. However, this transition can be jarring, especially for users who rely on the full feature set of the classic Outlook.

    Your suggestion to offer both versions in parallel makes a lot of sense. It would allow users to choose the version that best fits their needs while Microsoft continues to improve the new Outlook. This way, users who prefer the classic version for its comprehensive features can continue using it without disruption.

    Here's the channel for sharing your using experience and suggestions with New Outlook for Mac's engineering team- Contact support and provide feedback in new Outlook for Windows - Microsoft Support.

    It's great that you found a solution to reinstall Microsoft 365 and get the classic Outlook back. If you have any more questions or need further assistance, feel free to ask. Your feedback is valuable and can help shape future updates.

    Thanks for your kindness and your understanding would be highly appreciated.

    Wish you have a great day!

    Sincerely,

    Alex | Microsoft Community Moderator.

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