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Microsoft Designer Hits General Availability, Expands to Mobile
Microsoft Designer, the company's AI-powered design tool, officially hit general availability on Wednesday after being unveiled during Ignite 2022.
The tool, which has been in preview since it was revealed, allows users to create graphical elements with text prompts and has integration with other Microsoft apps through Microsoft Copilot.
Along with the announcement of official release, the company said that the Microsoft 365 tool is arriving on more platforms, including iOS and Android devices, as a free mobile app. The tool also now has support for more than 80 languages.
Microsoft also announced new capabilities for Copilot Pro users (Microsoft's $20-a-month-per-user subscription):
"With a Copilot Pro subscription, when you’re in Word and PowerPoint you can create images and designs right in the heart of your workflow," said Microsoft's Sumit Chauhan, in a blog post announcing the release. "From Word or PowerPoint, click on the Copilot icon and describe an image you’d like to create. In Word, coming soon, you can even ask to create a banner for your document and a design will be generated for you based on the content of your document."
Microsoft said that new templates are also making their way into the services with Designer's official release. The latest offerings will provide users with ideas, styles and descriptions to help during the prompt process. Users can also share and build on templates within their designated community.
Microsoft Photos for Windows 11 will also be receiving a handful of new Designer features and hooks. Restyle image will let users upload a photo and direct Designer to modify it in the style of their choosing (as seen below). Photos can now be edited with custom frames through the use of Designer's text prompt. Microsoft said that a future update to photo editing will bring the ability to edit backgrounds through text prompts.
[Click on image for larger view.] Figure 1. Designer's new Restyle image feature in Windows Photo.
Now that the service is out of preview, those with a basic Microsoft account can use Designer and take advantage of 15 "daily boosts" for prompts and image edits. Those on the Copilot Pro plan will receive 100 daily boosts per day.