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Microsoft Shares Teams Update in April 2022 ‘What’s New’ Blog

Seemanta Dutta Alamy Stock Photo.jpg

Image: Seemanta Dutta - Alamy Stock Photo
In its latest monthly Teams blog entry, Microsoft rounded up its latest update to its Microsoft Teams platform, which give users a host of new features and updates to Teams meetings, calling, chat, frontline, and admin capabilities.
 
For meetings, the company shared new features, which include:
 
  • Share system audio for web-based meetings: Through a setting in the Share Content settings, web users can now include audio when they share their screen during a Teams Meeting.
  • Updated presenter mode controls: Microsoft has made several changes to its Presenter mode, a presentation mode that allows presenters to customize how their video format and shared content are displayed. Presenters can now choose whether they show up on the left or right side of the content Finally, resizing the video feed will now automatically adjust the content size. These updated controls are available in all desktop or window Presenter mode formats, including reporter, standout, and side-by-side.
  • Noise suppression update and high-fidelity music mode: Team’s noise suppression feature will now detect if music is present in a meeting and allow users to choose if it’s unwanted background noise or intentional with a high-fidelity music mode. This feature is currently only available to educational institution customers.
  • iOS updates to notifications: Team users on iOS will now have a notification drawer located on the top of their screen, which will allow them to preview, collapse, and clear notifications.
  • Update for Firefox users: Teams users on Firefox will now have desktop and window screen sharing support for meetings.
  • Live captions are GA for Azure Virtual Desktop and Citrix: Teams users on VDI for Azure Virtual Desktop and Citrix will now have access to the live captions feature.

 

For calling, the company made several updates, including:

  • Configurable call forward settings: Through the Teams Admin Center or Teams PowerShell Module, admins can configure the call forwarding setting for users in their tenant, routing calls to a second person or a designated group if a user is out of the office.
  • Banners for emergency calling: Admins can now inform users about emergency calling via a customizable banner that will appear within the Calls app, and they’ll be able to acknowledge the notification by clicking on it.
  • Outlook contacts for calling: Users can now view Outlook contacts, and associated phone numbers, through a drop-down selection on the dial pad in the Calls app or when transferring a call.
 
For chat and collaboration, the company added:
  • Text predictions for Teams mobile: Mobile Teams users will now receive inline word and phrase suggestions from Microsoft's Editor Text Predictions.
  • Team templates: With Power Automate templates, users can create predefined channels and add apps.
  • Updated Emoji: Microsoft is updating its emojis and reactions to include over 1,800 emojis.
  • Suggested chat replies: Users can now click on one of three suggested replies in Teams chat to respond to a previous message.
  • Filters for non-meeting chats: A new chat filter feature will filter out meeting chats and chats with bots and only display one-on-one or group chats.
  • Power Automate file upload update: When a user uploads a file to the Power Automate portal, the file will now show within the window of a Teams Approval request.
 
For frontline workers, updates include:
  • Virtual appointments with Microsoft Bookings in Teams: With an integration between Microsoft Forms and the Microsoft Bookings app in Teams, enterprises can receive and accept/decline virtual appointment requests from customers.
  • Updated tag management settings: Default tag management settings in Teams Admin Center will include Team owners and members, which will allow users to create, edit and adjust tags to fit their team.
  • Walkie Talkie app is now available on Kyocera 5G Rugged Smartphones: Kyocera’s DuraForce Ultra 5G and DuraSport 5G devices are available with the Walkie Talkie app and a push-to-talk button.
 
For admin tools, Microsoft shared:
  • Pin order options: Teams admins can now determine the order of pinned apps that show in the users’ compose box through a new setting option in the setup policies.
  • Teams device store: Teams admins can search for and purchase certified Teams devices with a device store portal within Microsoft Teams Admin Center. Admins can buy from major Microsoft device partners or have orders fulfilled by a third party. The store is open for U.S. and Canadian customers, with international availability coming later this year.
  • User request options for blocked apps: Users can now search and request access to blocked apps. Previously, when a user would search for apps in the Teams Client marketplace, blocked apps wouldn't display.
  • Follow Office preview extends to Mac: Mac users are now able to take advantage of public preview features before they are released to the public. Admins can accomplish this by adding the "follow Office preview" policy to a specific Mac user.
 
In addition to these updates, Microsoft recently shared a new partner program for its Operator Connect, which aims to expand access to the BYOC voice option. Check the recent No Jitter coverage for more information: