Microsoft’s Teams had a very busy September adding a host of new features. Now, the firm is looking to improve the performance of its Teams service as it continues in the battle to beat Zoom in the video conferencing space.
In an update detailing the features added in September, Microsoft explained how it was trying to improve Teams’ performance as a large proportion of the workforce continue to work from home.
Microsoft says it’s working to ensure businesses and schools “have a high-performance experience that scales across their devices and levels of internet connectivity.”
Performance improvements in Teams
For times when there is limited network connectivity, Microsoft is working on enabling offline support in Teams so users can write messages offline and these can be automatically sent when connectivity is re-established. It’s already possible to run the desktop client on Windows and macOS in environments with limited bandwidth or without a network connection.
Meanwhile, Microsoft says it has boosted Teams’ desktop launch time on Windows and macOS by up to 30% and is making changes to video rendering. At the same time, Microsoft is optimizing battery life for Teams iOS users in a move aimed to help support Firstline Workers and those away from their desktops throughout the day. In addition, Microsoft says it’s optimizing the Android Teams app for low bandwidth environments.
New features to beat Zoom
The improvements to performance come hot on the heels of some major Teams feature updates during September as Microsoft looks to leapfrog Zoom in the videoconferencing space. For example, Teams Together Mode has seen the addition of Scenes, which will enable work colleagues to meet in a variety of settings including coffee shops, auditoriums and conference rooms.
