Microsoft announced this week the Outlook.com beta, a new experience of the company’s webmail that we can now access. As it is already consistent with the products of the people of Redmond, they look for the feedback of the users willing to try their services in advance.

Although Outlook.com has undergone several significant changes throughout its life, the most memorable does not stop being the fact that before they were basically Hotmail. The experience however, has been improving constantly, and although the mobile app is far superior to what we find on the web, this beta gives a good touch of fresh air.

How to access the Outlook.com beta

To test the beta you just have to look for a switch at the top of the screen when you enter Outlook.com that says “try the beta version”. If it does not appear yet, as the option to try the beta will be coming in the next few days, you can access it right now using a little trick :

• Enter Outlook.com, wait for the inbox to load, and then on the URL in the browser’s address bar, replace the section that says / owa / by / mail / .

Do not uncheck the beta box, or otherwise you will lose access to the beta interface.

A smarter, faster, more personalized inbox

At first glance the changes are not too many and the truth that little they have touched on the design is quite subtle, but for the most educated and demanding eyes, perhaps the refinement of the buttons, the menus, and the shape of the that the messages are stacked.

Microsoft says that it is a faster experience, because they work with a more responsive web framework that offers an improved search function. The truth is that just and you will notice something, and this is not bad, Outlook.com is already quite fast nowadays.

The new search function has improved somewhat, and it looks better. It is now easier to find files to attach, such as photos, and insert them in an email.

In fact, you have a new section in the sidebar on the left from which you can access all the photos you have received or sent by mail. That section lets you easily filter the images according to sender.

You can also preview files and photos directly from the conversation list.

Now, when talking about a smarter inbox, refer to the quick tips that Outlook.com will be able to give you when you write an email. You are going from information about restaurants, flights, or the agendas of your team if you are talking with a work group.

However, at least for this editor, the best that they have added are the suggestions of emojis and GIFs integrated in the post editor. In the bar with the buttons to format the text, you will find an emoji and when you click on it the search engine will appear on your right.

You just have to write a word in the drawer, wait for the suggestions and select the one you like the most in a click to add the emoji or GIF to your email.

These are not the only changes and developments that will be reaching the beta, in the coming months you will see more integrations, especially in relation to the Calendar and the Contacts application.

Depending on the opinions of those who participate in the program, they will make more changes, add more things or remove others. It’s good news for those who use Microsoft’s webmail.