Over the past two months, you might have encountered some issues when interacting with the classic Outlook desktop email client on your PC.
Multiple users have lodged complaints across social media, indicating that the mouse pointer seemingly vanished while using the app, rendering it unusable (via BleepingComputer).
"This has been happening to me every other day or so for the past month," a user indicated. "I have often needed to restart my computer to fix it, which disrupts my workflow pretty badly. I have not found a fix."
Microsoft is currently investigating the issue, which causes the mouse pointer, and in some instances, the cursor to disappear while using Outlook. It will subsequently provide additional information about the issue as it becomes available.
Perhaps more concerning, the software giant indicated that the issue is seemingly widespread beyond the email client as it's also impacting platforms across its Microsoft 365 suite of productivity apps.
When using classic Outlook, you may find that the mouse pointer or mouse cursor disappears as you move the pointer over the Outlook interface. Although the mouse pointer is not there, the email in the message list will change color as you hover over it. This issue has also been reported with OneNote and other Microsoft 365 apps to a lesser degree.
Microsoft
While the software giant investigates the issue, it has requested impacted users to ask their admins to open a support case with the Outlook Support Team, where they can submit diagnostic log files to help with the investigation process.
To that end, Microsoft has provided three workarounds for the annoying issue as it works on a permanent fix.
- When you hover over the Outlook message list and the email color shade changes to a different color, select an email. This may cause the mouse pointer to reappear.
- Open PowerPoint and click into an editable window in PowerPoint and then click back to Outlook and check if you have your mouse pointer again.
- Restart your computer.
Users have blatantly expressed their reservations and reluctance to transition from the Windows Mail and Calendar apps to the new Outlook app, citing feature parity issues. Some have even indicated that the app is yet to reach its prime-time.
According to our Senior Editor Zac Bowden, "For a default OS emailing experience, the design and UX are abysmal. Why is this app so darn ugly compared to many of the other built-in utility apps on Windows 11, like Paint, Notepad, Microsoft Store, and Settings? Outlook stands out like a sore thumb and doesn’t even look like a Windows app."
Have you had issues with the mouse pointer disappearing when hovering over classic Outlook? Let me know in the comments.
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