"New Look" Hotmail

Question

I was quite happy with my hotmail account when suddenly and without warning the format changed and I now have a large, intrusive and useless picture panel. When I try to read my emails they open up as a complete screen and I have difficulty in returning to my Inbox. The header controls annoyingly no longer have the delete button which is now on a drop down menu. How do I get back to the legacy format? AS I NEITHER REQUESTED NOR WANTED THIS NEW GARBAGE FORMAT.

Answer 1

@Alan Wright said

suddenly and without warning the format changed

Is there any chance that you had Classic Outlook and have been switched to New Outlook?

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/what-version-of-outlook-do-i-have-b3a9568c-edb5-42b9-9825-d48d82b2257c

The header controls annoyingly no longer have the delete button which is now on a drop down menu.

I assume you mean that you are seeing this:

And you want to see this?

If so, you need to switch to the Classis Ribbon by clicking the little down arrow on the far right of the Ribbon.

comes up with Show on the right, Show on the bottom, Fill screen, pop out only or Resize. THERE IS NO "HIDE" OPTION

Fill Screen and Pop Out are about as close as you can get to "Hide". Try each and see which one is the lesser evil.

Answer 2

The layout change is part of the new Outlook/Outlook.com experience and the legacy Hotmail interface cannot be restored. However, several layout options can reduce the issues described:

1. Adjust or hide the Reading Pane (the “picture panel”/preview area)
   • In Outlook on the web/Outlook.com: go to the View tab > Layout > Reading pane.
   • Choose Show on the right, Show on the bottom, or Hide to remove the preview panel entirely.
2. Make messages open in a list + reading pane instead of full screen
   • With the Reading pane set to Show on the right or Show on the bottom, selecting a message will show it in the pane instead of taking over the whole window, making it easier to return to the Inbox.
3. Customize the look and feel (theme and dark mode)
   • Select Settings (gear icon at the top) > General > Appearance.
   • Choose a different theme or enable/disable Dark mode to make the new layout more comfortable.
4. Change how messages are grouped and displayed
   • To adjust conversation grouping: select the View tab > Messages > Conversations, then choose Group into conversations or Show each message separately.
   • To further personalize the message list and reading experience, see the options under View and Settings.
5. Use built-in help or support if controls are missing or behaving unexpectedly
   • In Outlook.com/Outlook on the web, select Help on the menu bar and enter a query such as “change layout” or “reading pane.” If self-help does not resolve the issue, scroll down to Still need help? and select Yes to contact support.

The classic Hotmail UI cannot be brought back, but these layout and appearance settings allow the mailbox to behave more like the older experience (list + preview, minimal extra panels, and clearer navigation back to the Inbox).

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References:

• Change the look of your mailbox in Outlook.com and Outlook on the web
• Get help with Outlook.com