Android users can look forward to an official Microsoft mail client released later this year, following on from the launch of the Outlook Web App (OWA) for iPhone and iPad last year. Office365 users in particular will look forward to an Android client that offers Exchange ActiveSync support.

There are a number of alternatives in the Android marketplace but Microsoft is planning to include a number of new features to set its OWA client apart.

A new “clutter” system promises to help users sort through their important and unimportant messages. 

There will also be enhanced integration with OneDrive for automatic attachment syncing and allowing users to set permissions for these attachments, such as who can edit the document. 

Writing on the Microsoft blog, product marketing manager Steve Chew said, “Outlook Web App now includes full integration with OneDrive for Business, allowing you to easily share files stored in the cloud as attachments in your email. 

“There are two ways you can share a file with Outlook Web App and OneDrive for Business:

“When you send an attachment from your computer or device you can now automatically upload the file to your OneDrive cloud drive and send it as a link.

“You can also easily attach a file directly from your OneDrive cloud drive when sending an email in Outlook Web App.

“When you send these links in Outlook Web App, permissions on the document are set automatically. Any recipient on the To: and CC: lines will be able to view and edit the file by default. No manual configuration is needed, it will just work. We also make it easy to change the permissions from the file directly from the email message. You can set permissions to view-only if desired, so no one can edit the file without your permission.” 

Meanwhile, Windows Phone users are about to gain access to personal digital assistant called Cortana, named for a character from the Xbox game Halo via the embedding of AI and Bing Search technology.