Microsoft has announced the general availability of personal features in Teams to users on desktop, mobile, and web versions of its unified communications platform.

These personal features in Teams are designed to bring users closer to the people they care about so they can call, chat, plan, and organize things big and small—together in one place.

The company points out that it is making Together mode, a key feature of Teams, available for personal activities. Users can now turn any regular video call into a shared virtual environment using Together mode to help feel like they are in the same space as family and friends.

According to Microsoft, that using Together mode, video call fatigue is reduced because the brain doesn’t have to work as hard when compared to a standard video call. Users can choose from a variety of new virtual environments such as a family lounge, coffee shop, or even a summer resort to make their calls more engaging, fun, and connected, even when someone is apart from important people in their lives.

Teams also organizing scheduled calls easier because users can now manage tasks both big and small without ever leaving their chats.

First, bringing people together in a group chat is as simple as adding people using their email or phone number. Even if someone you add doesn’t use Teams, they can still see and respond to all group chats via SMS text.

Once in a group chat, you can create a shared to-do list and assign tasks to others in the group. Everyone in the group can view and edit task details or check-off items when completed.

The new options also provide polling capabilities to help gauge group decisions.

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