Microsoft Adds New Features To Windows to Win Back Users
Microsoft will add Family Safety features to the Android platform in the coming months.
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Microsoft is moving to a subscription-based model for some of its services with the launch of new subscription plans for its Microsoft 365 Personal and Family suite of apps. These will replace the current Office 365 plans.
The new plans will be available on 21 April at $6.99 per month (Rs 527 approx) for Personal (one person) and $9.99 a month (Rs 752 approx.) for a Family (up to six people) subscription.
The company has introduced new features to its portfolio of apps and services and will also update its Edge web browser which will add features like vertical tabs and smart copy.
A Look at the New Microsoft 365 Features
1.Microsoft Editor
This feature is on similar grounds as the grammar software, Grammarly, that uses artificial intelligence to keep a track of what you are writing and subsequently recommends changes for duplicate words or if you have gone wrong with the grammar.
The feature was offered for free in its beta phase as an extension for the Google Chrome browser but is now being added to Microsoft’s Office apps. It also has a host of other features like plagiarism checker and something that will suggest you proper use of words at times like using “police officer” instead of “policewoman”.
The regular grammar and spellcheck feature offers support for 20 languages. The technology also helps you in learning new phrases and flags words that you end up using too often which helps you improve your writing style.
Subscribers will get access to features that will help them re-write entire sentences and phrase them better with background checks on plagiarism.
2. Family Safety
Microsoft has also added a driver’s report feature in the Family Safety App which helps people keep track of first-time drivers in a family. Microsoft has said that none of the data will be shared with third-party sources.
This tool has been added to advocate better driving habits behind the wheel. It also has a feature that will allow people to send alerts when family members leave specific locations like home, work or school.
The company hasn’t shared details of how the feature will work within Microsoft’s ecosystem yet.
The Family Safety app also adds a feature that will help keep track of the screen time for kids on Windows, Android, and Xbox devices. It will help parents monitor for how long kids are watching content on devices and they can also make sure that kids aren’t exposed to any mature content.
Microsoft has said that the Family Safety features will be coming to the Android platform in the coming months.
3. Other Additions
In Excel, the company has added a feature that will track your expenses and spending patterns and then suggest better ways to budget their money. The company said that the feature will provide insights on how an individual spends and will also offer alerts on price rise in commodities, bill payments and more.
This is a feature that will first become available in the US and then later globally.
It is also getting new data types like food, movies, and places and even different types of pokemon! This way you’ll be able to convert simple text like “ bread” and get nutritional information on it.
Microsoft Powerpoint has also added a new feature wherein you’ll be coached on how to make your presentation better and hassle-free. It will help people practice on the slide deck and avoid stuttering during live presentations. The presenter coach will monitor your voice and suggest ways to improve your speech and make the presentation more lively.
New Features Added in Chromium Web Browser
Microsoft also announced new features for its Edge browser based on Google’s Chromium open-source project that will add some consumer features like Vertical Tabs, Smart Copy and Password Monitor in the days to come.
1.Vertical Tabs
The vertical tabs feature is to help users have a bird’s eye view of all the tabs they have opened and this basically is a feature for people who can’t keep a track of how many tabs they open at once.
Microsoft says that this layout will help those people who are researching a topic online and want to open more than a dozen tabs on the same window.
2. Smart Copy
The Smart Copy feature helps you copy web content into a document by retaining the format including images and links.
3. Password Monitor
The Password Monitor feature will notify you if the passwords you have saved for autofill purposes later have been compromised as part of a hack. If so, the browser will prompt you to take action and change the password.
There will be a dashboard that will list the vulnerabilities and show all the leaked credentials.
Currently, Firefox and Google Chrome also offer a similar feature.
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