Skype gets a new overhaul with new themes and features

Skype has had more redesigns in the past five years than I have had hot dinners, but Microsoft is always willing to try and tweak things one more time. The software maker teases plans for an “improved, faster, reliable and super modern Skype”. Microsoft says it has listened to the comments and, over the next few months, will begin rolling out changes to modernize Skype.

The most important part of Skype, what Microsoft calls the call phase, gets the most attention. The grid that appears during calls will soon include all participants in a call, whether they have video enabled or not. This puts all the participants side by side, including your own video in the main interface.

Image: Microsoft

Microsoft is also adding new themes and layouts to this view, providing much-needed customization to Skype’s main calling interface. You’ll be able to choose between speaker view, grid view, large gallery, Ensemble mode, and even a content view – with options to show only people with video enabled.

Skype’s new colorful themes will be available soon, with gradient buttons, an improved side panel on mobile, and Fluent Design icons in all apps. Skype users without an avatar will also get colored gradients to make it easier to distinguish between chats.

Image: Microsoft

However, it’s not just about design changes. “While we liked the design changes, we knew they weren’t enough,” admits the Skype team in a blog post detailing the changes. “We had to focus on performance to make the experience enjoyable. Microsoft says it boosts performance on the Android version by over 2,000% in “key scenarios” and by 30% on desktop versions of Skype.

Microsoft is also committed to supporting all browsers with its future changes to Skype. “We believe the Skype experience should be seamless, accessible and reliable no matter what browser or device you are using, which is why we are adding support for all browsers,” says the Skype team. . “We want to make sure that no matter what device, platform or browser you use, Skype will always give you a great experience. “

Image: Microsoft

Some of these improvements are live now, while more will be rolled out in the coming months. Custom notification sounds are among the immediate new features, while a new TwinCam feature that lets you add your phone’s camera to a call seems to be coming later.

Microsoft is certainly focusing on a wide range of improvements for Skype. This is the last Skype redesign since Microsoft started tweaking things initially in 2014, followed by a Snapchat-like design in 2017, another redesign in 2018 that ended sweeping Snapchat-like changes and to many changes to desktop and mobile applications. since.

It’s surprising to see yet another redesign, albeit a small one. Microsoft has reported a shift in focus towards Microsoft Teams over the past year, with attempts to draw consumers into Teams. Microsoft’s struggles with Skype created a Zoom moment at the start of the pandemic last year, and the company has tried to leverage Teams and its free all-day video calls as a Zoom response for consumers.