Microsoft has begun to introduce to the public a new design of its Office application suite on Windows. Microsoft initially announced the new design of this Office application in the summer, aiming to be consistent with Windows 11, which was launched two months ago.
The appearance of the new design is more concise, and the accent color of each application is lighter. Instead, by default, the window frame and the rest of the application will follow the system's dark or light theme, but you can change this setting. The ribbon also looks a bit different, now it looks more like a floating panel with a pop-up window. It also uses typical Windows 11 style rounded corners.
Microsoft said that it is also committed to increasing support for Windows 11's unique mica transparency effect. If you are not familiar with it, this is the effect you see in the Windows 11 start menu, settings applications, and other parts of the operating system using transparency.
If you try to enable this feature, there are a few things you need to be aware of. The upcoming switch is only available for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Outlook, but Outlook does not allow you to enable the new look. You need to enable it in the other four applications, but once enabled, it will be applied to all your Office applications, including Access, Outlook, Project, Publisher, and Vision.