Microsoft Teams hopes its technology will help people use Teams for their personal use. In short, the company wants users to rely on Teams to connect with their friends and family. A couple of months ago, Microsoft announced its plans to introduce Teams for personal use on Android and iOS. Now, those features are available in preview to Teams mobile apps.
Microsoft Teams targets friends and families
New Microsoft Teams preview features will become generally available in the coming weeks. In its recent blog post, Microsoft wrote:
“In March, we announced new features in Teams on mobile (iOS and Android apps) designed to bring you closer to your friends and family…With the new features, we hope to extend the power of Teams beyond work scenarios to your personal life.”
Following is the list of features personal Teams users can try in the preview:
- Stay connected with text, chat, and video calling
- Keep everyone on the same page and pick up where you left off
- Collaborate and share important documents efficiently and securely
- Easily share location and information
Similar to enterprise users, anyone can use the Teams app to connect with their friends and family members through messaging and video calling. Teams users can also share lists, documents, and calendars all within the group dashboard.
Since Teams also integrates with your other Microsoft 365 apps, you can share files and documents from Word, Excel, and PowerPoint right from within the Teams. Last but not least, well, the location-sharing feature is also available as part of Teams’ new personal features.
How to get started with new Teams preview features
According to Microsoft, these features are designed to eliminate the need for separate tools to connect with friends and family members. Instead, Teams promises to offer “one central hub for individuals, groups, and families to collaborate and stay connected and organized.” There are a couple of ways you can try these new Microsoft Teams features.
If you currently use the Teams mobile app at work, you can easily add your personal Microsoft account. Navigate to settings to and select Add an account to sign in with your personal Microsoft account, or create a new one with your phone number. Now, you can easily switch between your personal and work accounts via Settings.
If you don’t use Teams mobile app at work, download the app for Android or iOS from their respective app stores. Now, sign up with a personal Microsoft account, or create a new one with your phone number. Once you sign up with your personal Microsoft account, you can create groups and invite your friends and family members.
