Closely following the recent release to business of its Office 2010 suite, Microsoft announced Monday a new version of its Windows Live Hotmail. The software giant is describing the newest version of the popular mail client as “the next generation in personal e-mail.”
In a post on the company’s Windows Live blog, Group Program Manager Dick Craddock said the new version addresses e-mail needs that have arisen in the last few years, including e-mail that often requires a user to leave the inbox to complete an action, bigger attachments, and smartphones that sync e-mail, contacts and calendar.
‘Take Back Your Inbox’
Not surprisingly, Craddock said Microsoft’s research showed the number-one issue for e-mail users is helping to manage the deluge of incoming e-mail.
To help users “take back your inbox,” he said, Hotmail will offer new tools that will not only help with a Hotmail inbox, but also with other e-mail services like Gmail, Yahoo Mail Plus, or AOL — all from within Hotmail.
In a new summary screen, incoming mail is divided into categories such as from contacts, social updates, appointments, shipping notices, or flagged, and the categories can be used to sort the inbox. Since many people receive social updates from their friends on Facebook, Flickr and the like, the updated Hotmail also lets a user post comments directly to the sites.
A new tool, which Craddock described as “the first and only virtual broom in any inbox,” can manually or automatically sweep unwanted graymail — not spam, but not top priority — into folders. Automatic sweeping can be set up by checking a box.
Up To 200 Photos in an E-Mail
E-mails with photos can automatically show a preview of attachments and be viewed as a slideshow with one click. By combining Hotmail with an account on Windows Live’s online storage service, SkyDrive,…