Microsoft is slowly releasing a new version Windows Live Hotmail this week, though, as LiveSide.net reports, many users are having problems with the new design and want Microsoft to revert back to the old layout. We have been looking at the new version of Hotmail for most of the morning and have not seen any problems with it so far. The new layout will take some getting used to, but overall, it is simpler and faster than the old Hotmail and Microsoft has significantly increased the storage limit.
The new version of Hotmail is being rolled out slowly and most users at not able to access it just yet. It is important to note that you can choose if you want to try the new interface and that you can switch back to the classic version at any time. We tested the new version in both Internet Explorer and Firefox and it worked just as advertised.
New Look
The new look is a lot cleaner than the old Hotmail, with a lot of white space. Microsoft refers to it as being “more like a repainted room than a remodeled house.” As with the old version, you can choose between different layouts and themes. According to Microsoft, this new version is also 70% faster for users on broadband connections and 54% faster for those still using dial-up connections. While we did not do any scientific tests, the new design does indeed feel a lot faster than the old Hotmail.
Storage Space Grows as Needed
This new version also now includes significantly more storage space (5GB to start and then 500MB more per month every time you hit the limit). Microsoft is also integrating more Live Messenger functions into this new version. While it is not quite Gmail Chat yet, you can already change your presence in Hotmail. Over time, Microsoft is planning to add more features to this.
Overall, we really liked this new version of Hotmail. It does not (yet?) include a lot of new functionality, but it does give Microsoft a very well designed scaffold to use once it decides to add more functions in the future.