Designed for modern devices, it can keep users up to date on many accounts

Jun 18, 2012 14:54 GMT  ·  By

Windows 8’s Metro-Style Mail application is another major selling point that Microsoft has been touting for the upcoming operating system.

The software was designed to provide users with the possibility to easily stay productive at all times through offering support for multiple accounts, push notifications, and more.

Of course, the application was intended to follow the design principles of Windows 8’s Metro UI as well, thus offering increased focus on content and not on the UI commands.

The application will also offer support for both light and heavy email users, as well as for the creation and management of folders.

Moreover, the app also uses standard protocols such as Exchange Active Sync, so that users could easily sync their contacts and calendar with their mobile phones.

Starting with Windows 8 Release Preview, the Mail app offers the possibility to easily switch between accounts and folders, with a 3-pane design aimed at simplifying navigation.

The Mail app features grouped respond commands into a single top-level command, while providing fast access to creating, responding to, and deleting messages.

Other commands have been placed in the app bar at the bottom, which is accessible through pressing Windows key + Z or through right clicking on the screen.

The message list in the app shows as many messages as possible. It is using smaller fonts than before, while spanning from the top to the bottom of the app.

The reading pane was designed to offer fast and fluid switching between messages, while being optimized to be 640px wide so it can fit newsletters, receipts, and other commercial mail.

When writing an email, users will see the To and Cc fields in a left pane, while the body of the text will be shown in a right pane. The formatting options are not visible when writing, but they will appear immediately when selecting a portion of text.

“Another part of designing a great Metro style app is to make sure it takes advantage of the unique aspects of Windows 8,” Jeremy Epling, lead program manager on the Windows Live team, explains in a recent blog post.

“Mail does this by deeply integrating into the operating system to make it easier to share, print, and stay up-to-date on your email.”

The Mail app also features a Live Tile which keeps users up to date right on the Windows 8 Start screen by rotating through the last 5 unread and unseen messages. It also enables users to create a secondary tile for any email folder or account.

“Email is an important part of our daily lives. We’re still continually working to improve Mail and have many more features on the way. Today we’re excited about the response to the app and the first preview release,” Jeremy Epling continues.

“We believe that people want a great email app that meets their modern expectations and, based on usage, we are seeing this in the Windows 8 Mail app.”

You can learn more info on what the Mail app in Windows 8 has to offer through the aforementioned blog post.

For a first-hand experience with it, download and install Windows 8 Release Preview.

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