![Diane Poremsky [Outlook MVP]](http://www.outlook-tips.net/images/2014/MVP_BlueOnly.png)
Great news for all Hotmail users. Microsoft will be making the Outlook Connector available with all accounts, not just the paid subscriptions. (Links to the current version of the Microsoft Office Outlook Connector are in the right sidebar.)
Paul asks:
"I've never paid for a Hotmail account but I have always been able to access mine through Outlook. So my question… why download the connector? I'd be afraid it would screw up my current ability to access Hotmail through Outlook."
The Outlook Connector makes the Hotmail (now Outlook.com) account act more like an Exchange server account, with copies of email, Calendar, and Contacts stored locally for offline access. If you use only email, then POP3 access is fine, but if you want to use your Hotmail contacts in Outlook or use the Hotmail calendar, you need to use the connector.
The Outlook connector works with Outlook 2003, 2007, 2010.
Published May 10, 2007. Last updated on July 1, 2013.