Microsoft 365 is about to gain a few more apps, at least if you’re on Windows 11. As early as this month, Microsoft 365 users will be able to use the new People, File Search, and Calendar apps.
Those Microsoft 365 companion apps are expected to ship some time in the coming weeks, according to the Microsoft 365 roadmap. But dates on that map are always subject to change.
That roadmap entry was updated on August 11, so there’s a good chance that the planned August release date will happen.
First announced in April of this year, the Microsoft 365 companion apps provide quicker and easier access to contacts, files, and calendar events. They live within the Windows 11 taskbar.
Microsoft breaks down the three companion apps on a support page:
- People companion: Allows users to quickly look up anybody in their enterprise and browse organizational charts, view contact information, and easily communicate with colleagues.
- File Search companion: Enables users to quickly find Microsoft 365 files, preview file contents, send files to colleagues, and easily access recently used documents.
- Calendar companion: Lets users quickly access their Microsoft 365 calendar, view upcoming events, join meetings, and search appointments directly from the Windows taskbar.
The tools are powered by Microsoft Graph, which can access data from Microsoft 365, Microsoft Entra, and other Microsoft cloud services. As a result, search functionality is robust and flexible.
For example, you can search for contacts within the People companion app by entering a name, title, location, department, or skills a person has.
While you could jump into a specific app, such as Teams, to find a contact, the People companion app provides a shortcut and also gathers together information from other apps.
To use the People companion app, you’ll need to be part of a Microsoft 365 plan that includes Teams.
The File Search companion works in a similar way, bringing in information from OneDrive, SharePoint, Teams, Outlook, and other services.
The Calendar companion app draws data from your Microsoft 365 calendar to show appointments and other events.
At the moment, you need to be part of the Microsoft 365 Insider Program for Business to use the companion apps, but that should change in the near future. The apps are also limited to Windows 11.
New Microsoft 365 apps
When you think of Microsoft 365, you may think of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. While those are some of the flagship apps of the suite, they’re far from the only apps available.
Over the years, Microsoft has expanded its library, adding OneDrive, Teams, and Copilot. Business and Enterprise users also get access to SharePoint, Exchange, and Loop — depending on which plan they have.
Microsoft 365 apps and services extend across a broad range of app types. While those apps and services are powerful and can help with productivity, heavy usage results in a massive amount of data that can be difficult to sort through.
Several newer features from Microsoft aim to simplify that process by bringing together information from across the Microsoft 365 suite. The new Microsoft 365 companion apps do that as well, but in specific areas.
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