It took the team more than three months, but Microsoft just announced that the Android application for Outlook is set for prime time.
Microsoft has finalized Outlook — removing the preview tag and bringing equality with the iOS version. After a series of enhancements that includes about 17 updates, Outlook for Android can be installed through Google Play Store for users with Android 4.0 and above. It can handle Gmail in some features very well, particularly in customization, and it offers an integrated productivity suite.
The Outlook team was not being idle on purpose — it needed to be sure that the Android version was indeed on par with iOS before detaching the "Preview" tag from the app. The app is evidently now on the matching level, even in its looks.
It makes sense that Microsoft would ensure its appearance is consistent across all mobile platforms. However, that doesn't mean they made the Android app a double of its iOS counterpart.
Outlook offers handy features like an integrated calendar and swipe-based email management tools, permitting users to postpone and prioritize messages. It's also convenient to attach files from a variety of cloud storage sources such as Dropbox and OneDrive.
The Calendar feature has a 3-day view, but it's missing a whole-week view. The month view is, practically speaking, just a date picker. It is built in though and it easily notifies you with appointment reminders. Setting group appointments is a breeze as this calendar feature is shareable to groups. The people section is a bit more interesting — it was revamped to include a unified view of user contacts, complete with quick options to get directions to a meeting, to start an email, or call contacts on the phone.
The app also synchs with a wide variety of account brands, including Yahoo! Mail, Office 365, Exchange, Outlook.com and iCloud, as well as Gmail.
More importantly, Outlook users can now permanently delete items from their deleted items folder. This was one of the top requests from users.
All in all, Outlook for Android's has come together nicely over the past few months. You can view the full list of key changes from the first quarter of the year in this Office Blog post.
