New shared calendars experience in Outlook for Windows goes out of preview

Microsoft announced a big update to improve the shared calendar experience in Outlook for Windows back in July 2019. After being in preview for almost two years, these shared calendar improvements are now rolling out to all Outlook users on Windows.

Microsoft says that this update significantly improves the reliability and sync latency for both shared and delegated calendars in Outlook for Windows. Previously, the shared calendar recipient had to wait a couple of mins to see the new changes, and there was also a slight delay in the calendar’s loading time.

The company has now addressed these issues, as the calendar should instantly appear upon selection, and all the changes will now immediately sync for everyone in the shared calendar. The new shared calendar experience is now available on all major platforms, including the new Outlook for Mac, Outlook for Windows, Outlook on the web, as well as Outlook for iOS and Android.

Microsoft noted that it’s a major update to Outlook for Windows since 1997, and the company has incorporated user feedback to eliminates the issues. “Since summer 2019, we polished the experience and fixed bugs, thanks to many customer reports. With tens of thousands of daily users on the preview, we feel confident now that the experience is going to delight calendar delegates.” the Exchange team explained.

It is important to note that the new shared calendar experience has just started rolling out, and it is only available for select Outlook for Windows users in the Current Channel. The company plans to gradually expand it to everyone in the coming months. If you’re interested, we invite you to check out this support page to learn more about these calendar sync improvements.