Microsoft 365 Family plans now come with 4TB less of OneDrive storage than they did until this week. Microsoft details the change in a support document.

That document frames the change as a positive because it means storage is allocated to users who need it automatically, but the public has had a different reaction. I've received several messages from disappointed users, and other outlets are rightly highlighting consumer outrage. Some people I know have already said they plan to cancel their subscription due to the change.

Regardless of how much storage an individual family actually uses, Microsoft 365 Family now includes substantially less cloud storage than it did before while costing the same amount.

I keep track of the best Microsoft 365 deals and update my piece with discounts regularly. If you know when to hunt, you can get a year of Microsoft 365 Family for $99.99 despite the normal price being $129.99 (the price of Microsoft 365 went up in January 2025). But with the massive 4TB reduction in OneDrive storage, there is no way to retain the value of Microsoft 365 Family. Even if you got it at a discount, you'd be getting less than before.

Considering Microsoft can roll out this change immediately for new and upgraded subscriptions, I understand why some people may hesitate before subscribing to Microsoft 365. Based on the Microsoft support document, Microsoft 365 Family plans will be moved to the shared storage model upon your first renewal on or after May 2, 2027.

Here is the exact phrasing from Microsoft:

"For existing Microsoft 365 Family and Premium subscribers, this change generally takes effect after the first subscription renewal on or after May 2, 2027, unless an eligible plan change occurs earlier."

I interpret that to mean that renewals made before that cutoff should not force you to the shared storage model. If that's accurate, you should be able to stack some time onto your subscription to keep a total of 6TB for a bit longer.

I'd suggest checking with Microsoft before making any purchases. If you receive confirmation from Microsoft that stacking subscriptions delays the change, please let me know. I have also reached out to Microsoft.

Windows Central take

I actually understand Microsoft's argument for having shared storage across a family. I use much more cloud storage than my wife, so it would be convenient to have more than 1TB of storage accessible through my account. My daughter, who is a toddler, only "uses" cloud storage through the photos and videos I back up for her.

But sharing a pool of storage does not make up for reducing the total storage across the plan by 4TB. For my use, I'd be okay with sharing 5TB across the entire family. But any forced reduction in storage is difficult to justify.

Now, during a cost of living crisis, many people will have to look at alternatives to OneDrive or pay to have more cloud storage.

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Microsoft's official X account was compromised this week in what appears to have been an attempt to promote a cryptocurrency token. The account followed another account and reposted a message asking how many likes would be needed to bring back Clippy.

An emphatic request to bring back Clippy is nothing new on social media, but the post by the since-suspended @clippymsftcto account was not a genuine plea to bring back the iconic assistant.

Normally, a story involving Clippy is lighthearted. Microsoft has playfully referenced the mascot over the years. Sadly, that's not the case here. On top of Microsoft being hacked, which is an issue in itself, the hack was apparently used to promote cryptocurrency.

Microsoft has since deleted its post on the situation, but the company apologized for the post about bringing Clippy back and emphasized that it does not endorse cryptocurrency. The Verge captured a screenshot of the post before it was removed.

The deleted post concludes with a somewhat ironic piece of advice to "rely only on Microsoft's official channels for information regarding our brands, products, securities, and intellectual properties."

Microsoft has deleted its post about the situation, but the tech giant confirmed that its account had been compromised. "We have confirmed unauthorized access to our account on X including posts that did not come from Microsoft," said a Microsoft spokesperson to The Verge. "The account has been secured and the unauthorized posts have been removed, and we are continuing to investigate the circumstances."

Microsoft should bring back Clippy

Obviously a hack done to promote a cryptocurrency scam is an issue. Microsoft's first priority should be to secure its accounts. Somewhere down the line, the company's leaders should ask if bringing back Clippy is a good idea.

Clippy has an interesting history, but people's views about the assistant have trended positively over the years. The favorable view of Clippy is likely due to a combination of irony and nostalgia, but people often are excited to see official mentions of the paperclip.

Microsoft's public perception has taken a hit, and having a bit of fun with Clippy could lighten the mood. Imagine Microsoft teasing major news about Windows on stage at its event next month and then revealing Clippy Copilot.

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Microsoft plans to get rid of three Microsoft 365 companion apps before the end of the year. Calendar, People, and Files are all on the chopping block and set to be retired on December 16, 2026.

Calendar, People, and Files are apps that integrate with the taskbar on Windows 11 to allow quick access to certain tasks and pieces of information.

I'd forgive you for not knowing about the companion apps since they only shipped last year.

Microsoft outlined the three companion apps at the time and highlighted how the apps "enhance productivity" by providing quick access to information. Now, one year later, that productivity boost is going away.

It's interesting to compare the language Microsoft used to describe the apps when they were new and now as the apps approach retirement.

Microsoft's text from when the apps were new:

"Microsoft 365 companions are a suite of apps designed to enhance productivity by providing quick access to people, files, and calendar- powered by the Microsoft Graph, directly from the Windows 11 taskbar."

Microsoft's new text as the apps approach retirement:

"The companion apps were an additional way to find calendar information, people, and files. Removing them doesn't delete or affect any existing capabilities or Microsoft 365 data. You can continue finding the same information by using existing Microsoft 365 and Windows experiences."

It appears sometime over the last year the apps devolved from being ways to enhance productivity to additional ways to find information you can get elsewhere.

Microsoft recommends a mix of Outlook, Teams, Windows Search, File Explorer, SharePoint, OneDrive, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other Microsoft tools to replace the three companion apps.

The three companion apps will stop working on or before December 16, 2026, so even if you have them installed on your PC, they will not work after the cutoff.

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The Microsoft 365 Roadmap is gone. This week, the site was rebranded as the "AI at Work Roadmap." The baffling change raises questions about what's going on at Microsoft and why its leaders think they can label anything as AI.

The roadmap lets you track features and updates to a variety of apps and services from Microsoft. Microsoft justifies the name change by highlighting that the roadmap now includes features from Dynamics 365, Power Platform, and Dataverse as well.

But the AI at Work Roadmap still details plans for thousands of features that have nothing to do with AI.

Neowin's Usama Jawad shared an editorial on Microsoft's latest rebrand already, and I'll echo some of the same thoughts. But some decisions are so astonishingly stupid that they require editorials from multiple outlets.

The name isn't even accurate

Microsoft is so eager to push AI that its decision makers have not even considered if the new name of the Microsoft 365 Roadmap is accurate. Yes, the roadmap includes AI features across the Microsoft 365 suite. It also now outlines changes to Dynamics 365, Power Platform, and Dataverse.

But there are a massive number of features discussed in the roadmap that do not use AI in any way. Let's look at the entries that appear on the "AI at Work Roadmap" when filtered to list anything new or updated within the last week.

• Microsoft Teams: Coordinated meetings support on Teams Rooms on Android
• Outlook: Manage multiple inbox rules at once.
• Microsoft Teams: Hide organizer name in the calendar view on Teams Panels and MTR-A
• Microsoft Teams: Breakout room support on Teams Rooms on Android
• Microsoft Teams: Report a message or an external user for security concerns in Gov clouds.

As far as I can tell, none of those are AI features. Perhaps there's some AI-written code in there or AI working in the background, but I doubt anyone would refer to breakout rooms support as an AI feature.

Microsoft, what are we doing here? Have we reached a point of desperation so extreme that the option to hide an organizer name needs to fall under the AI umbrella? I suppose if every single feature to ever ship to Microsoft 365 is considered AI, that metrics measuring AI use will trend upward.

A history of bad branding

Microsoft already had an established brand name recognized around the world in "Office." But the tech giant decided to rebrand its productivity suite as Microsoft 365. While that decision drew criticism, it at least made sense because Microsoft 365 includes several pieces of software that are not Office apps.

In 2025, Microsoft announced the baffling decision to rebrand Microsoft 365 as "Microsoft 365 Copilot." Our Executive Editor Jez Corden took Microsoft to task for that, and rightly so:

"The rebrand of Microsoft Office was dumb to start with, trampling on a legacy spanning decades. The second rebrand attaching Copilot is even more dumb, and follows the Copilot+ PC thought process of firmly putting the cart several miles before the horse. Copilot hasn't earned the right to be showcased alongside [technological] cultural milestones like Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Word."

Microsoft went on a spree in which it renamed a bunch of services to include some form of Copilot. The company had so many types of Copilots that it had to merge Copilot and Microsoft 365 Copilot.

That obsession with Copilot begs another question: If Microsoft needs to rename the Microsoft 365 Roadmap to mention AI, why not call it the Microsoft 365 Copilot Roadmap? I'd still hate the change but at least it would be somewhat consistent.

The idea of slapping "AI" onto anything is still silly, but at least Microsoft would be reusing a name that appears elsewhere.

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Microsoft 365 is a must-have software suite for millions of people. I've had a subscription since the days of SkyDrive and Office 365. I stack up whenever I find a great deal. Whether you're an experienced subscription stacker or paying for your first Microsoft 365 subscription, now is a great time thanks to a pair of deals.

Newegg has discounts on two bundles, one that comes with Microsoft 365 Personal and NordVPN ($61.99) and one that comes with Microsoft 365 Family and NordVPN ($84.99). Both bundles get you 12 months of each included piece of software.

Is now a good time to subscribe to Microsoft 365?

Right now is a great time to subscribe to Microsoft 365.

I've kept track of the best Microsoft 365 deals for years. Every once in a while, the most affordable way to get a subscription is to pick up a bundle. Even if you have no intention of ever using NordVPN, the bundled prices for Microsoft 365 and NordVPN are lower than the cost of Microsoft 365 on its own.

I don't mean to discount NordVPN. It's a great service on its own and I have used it regularly for years as well. I just assume people seeing this bundle are more interested in Microsoft 365. If you use both Microsoft 365 and NordVPN, the current bundles are incredible.

FAQ

Microsoft Forms just got a major upgrade thanks to Copilot. Microsoft 365 Copilot chat now lives within Microsoft Forms, adding a familiar tool to those who use AI in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Copilot in Microsoft Forms can suggest improvements to your polls and forms and present insights from responses.

The Copilot integration is available now to users with Microsoft 365 commercial Copilot licenses.

Microsoft listed all the changes to Forms in a blog post:

• Smarter suggestions & refinements: Get targeted recommendations to improve your form’s structure, clarity, and effectiveness. Copilot can also apply refinements directly to the form, so you can save time making edits – just describe what you want, and watch Copilot make it happen.
• Deeper analysis: Copilot can now analyze your results in-depth to provide clear insights and actionable takeaways for you and your team. You can even ask follow-up questions to help parse and summarize your data and unlock your next step.
• More settings: Review and update form settings with ease, such as applying custom thank-you messages and close dates, so your form is ready to send. You can also adjust question settings in bulk, such as making questions required.
• Open-ended chat: Copilot chat gives you access to a broad world of capabilities, whether you’re seeking inspiration on survey topics or consulting on how to configure your form – the possibilities are broad with Copilot at your fingertips.
• Basic branching: Apply basic branching logic directly through the agent. (Note that some complex scenarios are not yet supported, and you should continue to review your branching logic prior to sending your forms.)

I use Microsoft Forms to gather feedback from my American football team. I admit that I first tried it because my job centers around knowing Microsoft products. But after using Microsoft Forms for a while, I grew to prefer it over Google Forms.

Microsoft Forms can sync with Excel documents, making it much easier to stay on top of responses. I'm deeply entrenched in the Microsoft ecosystem, so anything that works seamlessly with the rest of my workflow gets bonus points in my book.

I also prefer some of the features of Microsoft Forms, such as question-level branching. That feature makes filling out forms feel smoother when a poll includes branching questions because it keeps you on the same page.

The layout of Microsoft Forms also presents results quicker because if you want to look at a chart, you don't need to open a separate spreadsheet.

The new Copilot experience in Forms could also be a boon to the platform, though I'll have to see it in action to judge. In my experience, Copilot as a general tool is good at suggesting improvements, performing bulk edits, and creating summaries, so it should thrive within Microsoft Forms.

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