Microsoft has launched a lightweight Outlook Lite Android app for low-end Android devices and areas with data connectivity issues. The app is less than 5MB download, while the regular version is more than 80MB download (depending on the device). The app is currently available in select countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, India, Mexico, Peru, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey and Venezuela.
Microsoft said it will consider adding more countries to the list in the future. The company added the app to its Office 365 roadmap in June, so the launch hints at a wider regional release. It allows users to access email, calendar and contacts for Outlook.com, Hotmail, Live, MSN, Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Exchange Online accounts.
The company claims that the Outlook Lite app is suitable for running on devices with less than 1GB of memory and 2G or 3G network connections, while at the same time the application is optimized to consume less battery.
In a blog post, the company said, “With Outlook Lite, our goal is to make Outlook more accessible to users around the world who use lightweight mobile devices, enabling them to achieve more.”
So far Microsoft joins a slew of lightweight apps designed by other companies for low-configuration Android devices, including Facebook Lite, Instagram Lite, TikTok Lite, Spotify Lite and Pinterest Lite.
Microsoft is also testing a new Outlook app for Windows that features new design and collaboration features.
