Microsoft Teams to launch next week; expect it to be a serious Slack alternative

Originally dubbed as Skype teams, Microsoft is reportedly working on a Slack-like alternative called Microsoft Teams. Going by the leaked screenshot, the new software is expected to be very similar to Slack.  According to TheVerge, it will be announced on 2 November at a Microsoft Office event. While it is easy to see the Skype connection here, Windows Central reports that the name could have been changed in order to help portray the new product as more business-friendly software where Microsoft plans on targeting working professionals. [caption id=“attachment_343418” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Image: Windows Central[/caption] What you get inside is stuff that is very similar to Slack. There are channels for groups, private messaging along with the ability to add emoji and giphy images, memes etc. Since this is a product from Microsoft, expect Teams to gel well with services like Skype, Office 365 and also become a part of Word, Excel and PowerPoint. For now, Microsoft is all geared up to announce its all-new Surface tablets along with what is expected to be a Surface desktop. While many believe that Microsoft will announce a refreshed Surface lineup, others think that Microsoft may skip on the Surface upgrades and focus on the All-in-one PC (Surface PC), OEM laptops and the XBox as well.