Mail programs for windows. The ideal email client for the desktop - there is such a thing

There are a whole bunch of email programs for Windows and Mac, but many of us still continue to use services through a web browser. Maybe there are good reasons for this? Today we are looking into email clients - what are the benefits of them, what are the harms, and is it even possible to find the ideal one?

Let's start, as usual, with the good. Email clients have many advantages over their web options.

No advertising or other information junk

On the mail page in a web browser, along with letters, a lot of unnecessary information appears. Annoying advertisements, news, links to other services, pop-up tips and tricks - all this is terribly annoying. Email clients lack all this, especially if you use the paid version.

You can connect several boxes at once and not get confused

Most often, we use several mailboxes at once, and on different services. For example, one address is work, another is personal, the third is for secondary information that is sent to the post office after registering in online stores, forums, services, and so on.

Switching between links in the browser to have instant access to the contents of the boxes is inconvenient: to do this, they must always be open in the browser. And there will be one email client, no matter how many accounts you have.

You can view letters even if there is no Internet

Typically, when you use an email application, emails are saved on your computer. This means you can view incoming and sent messages even when you are not connected to the network. When working through a browser, this option will not be available for obvious reasons: no Internet means no mailboxes.

No need to keep watch at the mailbox

To instantly notify about a new incoming message, you need to either keep tabs with mailboxes open, or install some kind of browser plugin - both options are quite inconvenient. In addition, even a plugin will not save you when you close your web browser - an important letter will arrive, but you will not see it right away.

Mail clients themselves contact the servers and request information about new letters. If the answer is positive, you immediately receive a notification that is difficult to miss.

But!

Email clients also have a lot of disadvantages. Here are the nastiest ones.

They have so many functions that you won't be able to figure them out right away.

While browser versions of mailboxes are made as simple as possible, developers often get carried away with applications, stuffing them with all sorts of options, functions and settings that most users don’t care about.

As a result, instead of just adding mailboxes and enjoying life, you have to delve into the jungle of the interface, trying to find where to set the signature and how to disable the stupid spell checker.

Multiplatform is a total disaster.

If you often work with mail on different devices with different operating systems, then applications will hardly be called a suitable solution. And then there’s the addictive effect: if you’re “stuck” to one application, then it’s inconvenient to use another, even if they have the same functionality.

Importing contacts can be difficult

While browsers have at the very least learned to pull up each other's history and logins with passwords, email applications have not always done this successfully. Usually the problem occurs when importing contacts from another application, not the web version.

As a rule, there are no problems with large solutions (Microsoft Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird). In the settings, select an item like “Export”, create a file with contacts, then in the new client click on “Import” or a similar button, and the document is added.

Less common or not very recent applications may use their own formats to store data, and then you will have to suffer a lot, transferring what you need to other services, for example Google Contacts.

Security is also not very clear.

Any program has vulnerabilities, and email clients are no exception. There is an opinion among experts that the more archaic the application, the more reliable it is, because there are no loopholes for hacking in the form of additional scripts and extensions. Mutt can be considered a kind of standard, but in 2017 only the most severe paranoids will be able to use it without pain in the eyes - this application is ungodly outdated in design and convenience fifteen years ago.

So do you need an email client and if so, which one?

We at the site are confident that the pros outweigh the cons, and with an email program it is still better than without it. The problem is that there are no perfect mailers, so you still have to turn a blind eye to the shortcomings.

So we have selected the best email clients for different platforms: some are on Windows, others on OS X, others on both, and you decide which one suits you best.

Microsoft Outlook

The application is convenient due to its tight integration with other Windows services and is great for work email. For example, there is a link to the to-do list and calendar, which will help optimize your work and make it more comfortable. Microsoft Outlook is also okay with multi-platform functionality: in addition to desktop OS, the application is available for iOS and Android.

The problem is that the Outlook client is included in the Office 365 package, the personal version of which is priced at 2,699 rubles per year. You will receive Word, Excel, PowerPoint and other standard programs. If you specifically need Microsoft Outlook, then hold on - it is a one-time purchase and costs 8199 rubles. Given the availability of many free analogues, this is, to put it mildly, an exorbitant amount.

Apple Mail

The standard application for OS X has decent functionality - you can get by with it. The client is free and comes straight with the Mac operating system. Work with the main services is supported: Google, Yahoo! and others. Among the pleasant bonuses is the ability to slightly edit the image attached to the letter by adding a comment or highlighting the desired area.

The problem is that This is an email client for Apple devices only.

Mailbird

The free mail client Mailbird captivates with its laconic, but at the same time very modern appearance, which can also be customized indefinitely. In addition, you can set combinations for hot keys: switching between folders, replying to all participants in the correspondence, and so on, this greatly speeds up the work.

The client has synchronization not only with regular services - Dropbox, Google Calendar, Todoist, but also with social networks and instant messengers - Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp.

The free version supports up to three accounts, while the paid version ($1 per month/$22.5 lifetime) has no limit. In addition, the Pro version has another useful feature - the ability to postpone an incoming message until later, so that after a specified time a repeated reminder of the received message will arrive.

The problem is that Mailbird is an email client for Windows and only for Windows.

Spark

This is an email program for Apple technology: the application appeared first on iOS, and then reached OS X and watchOS. Spark follows the logic of the popular Mailbox, which closed a year ago. The main folder stores new and important emails, and when they are no longer relevant to you, you can move them to the archive.

The service is free and works quickly. You can set parameters for a quick response, such as “Thank you”, “OK” and so on.

The problem is that In the desktop version, at first it’s unusual to work with gestures, but if you use a trackpad or Magic Mouse, the controls will be quite intuitive. For example, to delete a letter or move it to another folder, you can hover the cursor and move it left or right: this will display several options. In addition, along with swipes, you can select regular buttons to select a letter or move it to another folder.

AirMail

Another popular email client for Mac and iPad/iPhone with Apple Watch is also controlled by gestures. There is also support for the TouchBar in the new MacBook Pro. Flexible settings, integration with third-party services, support for smart sorting and the ability to connect a bunch of accounts - all this makes AirMail one of the best alternative email clients for Apple devices.

The problem is that AirMail has a paid distribution model. The desktop version costs 749 rubles, the mobile version costs 379 rubles. Is it worth paying when free analogues are no worse?

Thunderbird

The mail application was created by Mozilla, the developers of the well-known Firefox browser. The program, like a web browser, is flexible in configuration and has a bunch of extensions - useful and not so useful. There is support for modern security systems: suspicious emails are flagged, URLs are checked for authenticity, and automatic loading of attached pictures is blocked. Most importantly, Thunderbird is a completely free email client. No trial versions or reduced functionality.

The problem is that Thunderbird is completely unceremonious with your computer's resources. Firstly, the function of archiving folders and cleaning up deleted folders does not always work, as a result of which a lot of space on the hard drive is wasted, and secondly, the client also likes to eat up RAM.

The Bat!

This email client is extremely laconic and undemanding in terms of resources. But the application provides a high degree of security: data is encrypted on the hard drive, and the letters themselves are processed using the SSL and TLS protocols. True, you will have to pay for this: the Home version costs 2,000 rubles, and for the Professional version, which offers even more advanced protection, you will have to pay 3,000 rubles.

The problem is that design by The Bat! - from the last century, and even then the developers hardly bothered with it. Everything looks very simple and faceless.

Inky

A free email client with a modern design, it works under Microsoft Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. The mail application supports an unlimited number of mail records and can automatically sort letters by importance, which is especially pleasing when there are a lot of messages. In addition, you can manually set relevance settings: messages from which contacts to move to the top of the list.

The problem is that support for Google Apps, Office 365, Microsoft Exchange and a number of other useful services is available only by subscription, and you will have to pay $5 per month for it.

Which email client to download for Windows 10

If you choose an email client, then first of all find out which email clients are supported by your email address. As a rule, large international services are supported by all modern clients. For example, mail on Yandex, Gmail, Mail and most other major services supports: These three mail programs are the best. There are serious differences in them, but there are also a lot of similarities. You can download any email client for free. We recommend choosing one that includes antivirus and antispam. Just remember how much spam you receive. And if you switch your mail account to an email program, then the antispam of your service will have to be replaced with the antispam built into the client. But don’t be afraid of this, sometimes email clients handle this better than your email service. They also provide the ability to fine-tune antispam so that the necessary letters do not end up there.

Some email clients for Windows 10 allow you to work even without an Internet connection. This is the best option, since devices running the new OS are very mobile and you don’t always have access to the network. For example, you can open mail on the train from your tablet running Windows 10 32/64 bit. You will not be able to send a new letter or receive an email from someone. But you can view your correspondence history and view old messages. In addition, some email clients support convenient and structured viewing of attached files to old emails. This is available in the email client from the office suite, and this is what we offer you to download for free as an email client for Windows 10.

The site's observer has studied several email clients for Windows and tells us which programs may appeal to active email users who are tired of the Windows Live Mail or Microsoft Outlook interfaces.

Mailbird

An email client with an interface distinctly reminiscent of Sparrow for Mac OS. This is the second year the application has received the IT World award as the best email client for Windows.

The Mailbird team understands that many users want to add personality and improve the usability of the final product, and offers clients the following personalization solutions: color choice, customization of user interface panels and hotkey combinations.

The trend towards expanding the functionality of applications by connecting other applications is gaining momentum. The developers took this into account, so the application supports touch control and connection of third-party applications such as Facebook, Dropbox, WhatsApp, Twitter, Evernote, Todoist and some others.

The application is available in paid (Pro) and free (Lite) versions. Paid subscription, in turn, also exists in two versions: for a year and lifetime for $12 and $45, respectively. The paid version offers users quick previews of long messages and snooze messages.

Snooze messages allow the user to delay reading non-urgent correspondence for a specified period of time. After the grace period expires, the message reappears as unread.

The Pro version also offers the connection of an unlimited number of email accounts, versus a maximum of three in the free version. The free trial period for the Pro version is 30 days.

Mozilla Thunderbird

Cross-platform email client from the developers of the Mozilla Firefox browser.

The creators of the application laid the foundation on the OpenSource principle. The advantages of such projects are timely search and elimination of vulnerabilities, as well as rapid product updates.

The application developers did not ignore the issue of security of personal correspondence. Message encryption, digital signature and certificate verification are responsible for the confidentiality of users' personal correspondence. The powerful spam filter does its job well and can be trained.

Among the functional features, we can highlight support for modern mail protocols, RSS and Atom channels, lightweight, and extensive folder directories. Thunderbird is compatible with almost any encoding, can filter messages and work with several accounts at the same time.

According to Mozilla, the product is used by 495 thousand users in Russia and 9 million worldwide. The austerity and conceptual age of the user interface is intended to be brightened up by a large green button on the product website with the inscription “Download for free.”

eM Client

A simple and convenient email client in the style of Outlook.

Users are offered two versions of the product - Free and Pro. The $30 version offers unlimited account creation (versus a maximum of two for the free version) and a license for commercial use.

The advantages of the application include the connection of third-party services Microsoft Exchange, Gmail, iCloud, support for touch devices and custom widgets. Importing data from Microsoft Outlook, Windows Live Mail, Thunderbird, The Bat facilitates possible transition from other email clients.

the Bat

An email client characterized by powerful security mechanisms on the one hand and a complete absence of built-in spam filters, tedious interface setup and nondescript design on the other.

Compared to free competitors, the application wins in terms of privacy, holds its own when comparing functional features, and loses miserably in usability.

In everyday correspondence, the security requirements of most users are satisfied by the standard tools offered by other email clients, which is why the price tag of 2,000 rubles for the Home version seems overpriced.

Inky

Beautiful, modern and free email client.

In addition to a well-made user interface, Inky boasts the ability to work with multiple accounts, flexible filters, cloud synchronization and convenient visualization, in which the user is asked to choose colors and icons for different accounts.

The developers have built into the application automatic sorting of incoming emails by relevance. Messages from your closest contacts are marked with a blue drop, which means the message is highly important. Less important messages and spam are marked with less bright blobs and are lowered in the list.

In practice, there are often cases when sorting occurs on a time basis, which means assigning greater importance to the most recent message. A logical simplification of the sorting system that destroys the excellent idea of ​​care and attention to each user.

From a personalization point of view, Inky is a teachable and easily customizable client.

Finally, it is worth mentioning the interesting OpenSource development Mailpile, which is in beta testing.

This application is distributed free of charge and “lives” on voluntary donations, and therefore does not contain advertising.

People have been using mail for years, writing letters to each other to ask how they are doing, congratulating them on some holiday, sending postcards to loved ones, relatives, and acquaintances. In the modern world, such a need has disappeared. After all, with the advent of the Internet and its spread, people began to use e-mail. This is much more profitable in terms of time, as well as financially. You don’t have to buy paper, a pen, an envelope, or go to a post office somewhere to send a letter. It’s quite simple, without leaving your home, to print what you want and send. To do this, you need to have some free time and access to the Internet.

More and more people are starting to use email. The number of incoming and outgoing emails is growing steadily. The spread of Gmail and Hotmail is gaining new momentum. Special desktop clients or email programs come to the aid of users. They process incoming correspondence for the individual. At the same time, the email user saves time, because the program does part of the work for him.

Email clients have never been particularly popular, but that doesn't mean they're low quality or difficult to understand. There are a large number of varieties of such programs that are very easy to install and do not have any glitches. For each user, you can find a suitable email client depending on his preferences.

Advantages of email programs

• In order to check all incoming letters, it is not necessary to open the browser every time. The program itself will check your mail and download it to your computer at the frequency that the person chooses.
• The program does not require manual downloading every time you turn on your computer or laptop. The mail client will start itself, you just need to add it to autorun.
• Correspondence is checked from all mailboxes, if you have several of them. Letters are sorted into different folders or into one common one. The program conducts it according to your taste.
• The email client can download letters to your computer at any time upon your request. It doesn't even require Internet access. Which is a big plus!
• The program can sort all your letters depending on the subject, date, letter size, sender, and so on. Very comfortably. This function saves a lot of time for the user.
• Thanks to the client, a person can easily find the letter he is interested in, knowing only the keywords contained in it.
• When writing new messages, the user can pause the process, and the message will quickly be saved as a draft. The browser requires constant page reloading, and, of course, access to the Internet.
• Due to the fact that the email program does not always request access to the Internet, especially when viewing incoming correspondence, there is a significant saving in traffic, and, as a result, in finances, which cannot please the user.

When installing a desktop client, you can always open a web browser, go to any website, use the interface you are interested in, and read your correspondence. This right remains yours. But, you must admit, there is not always enough time to log in and check your email. And the program will do everything for you and help you not to miss important information. After all, in the flow of things, you can forget about some important letter that should arrive by email. The client will not have to sit a lot of time waiting to receive the desired message with the mail tab open. So many advantages!

But to make these advantages work for you- you just need to install the desired program on your computer and remain delighted with its work. If you're wary of having to pay some money to download an email client, you can leave your concerns aside. There are a huge number of free email programs.

Users are divided into two categories: those who use the Web interface to work with mail, and those who prefer to work in a software environment. I consider myself to be the latter. Mail program It’s convenient because if you have several addresses, with one click of a button you can collect all the correspondence and gradually, slowly, begin to study it. When in the first case you need to open several browser windows, there is a high probability that during work you can accidentally close the tab and you will have to re-enter passwords, logins, search for the desired letter, and all this takes time.

Email programs for Windows 10

It makes no sense to describe them all; firstly, there are quite a lot of them. Secondly, they all work on the same principle and are configured in the same way. Therefore, I will focus on the more well-known and frequently used among users. The list will include both paid and free products.

Mozilla Thunderbird

I'll start with my favorite - Mozilla Thunderbird. It's not hard to guess who the developer is by the name :)

pros: Simple interface. Virus protection. A large number of additions. Spellchecking. There is no problem with encoding at all. Blocking advertising, spam and dangerous objects in letters. Acceptability of working with RSS. There is a problem book and a calendar. Search. Import settings from The Bat and Outlook Express. Constant update. Blocking malicious objects, including images. Ignoring all various third-party codes and scripts. SMTP/POP3 protocol support

Minuses: Not noticed by me.

The Bat

Great email program. I haven't seen any analogues yet.

Positive Features: Encryption of correspondence, including via the SSL/TLS protocol. Ability to create your own letter templates. Ability to use macros and install various modules, including antispam and antivirus. Backup. Password protection of the mailbox. Supports SMTP/POP3 protocols.

Negative: Paid

eM Client

Very similar to Outlook Express, as it was developed as an alternative to it. Is an expanded version of Sylpheed.

Flattering reviews: Encrypt everything you send. User-friendly interface. Import settings from other applications. RSS. Creation of widgets. Spell check. Antispam. Antivirus. Synchronization with contacts and calendar Wonder Mail Server. Quickly search for e-mail addresses and letters. Supports SMTP/POP3/SSL protocols. Create rules and filters and much more.

Not flattering: Paid. In the free version, you can create only 2 accounts.

Claws Mail

Pros: Protocol support (POP3, SMTP, NNTP, SSL, IMAP4rev1, etc.). Data encryption. Antispam. Antivirus. Ability to use additional plugins. Like all similar applications, there is an address book. Auto-encoding. Creating templates. Spell check and much more.

Minuses: Not defined by me.

IncrediMail

What's good: A very unusual program. Can add animated characters to the text of the message, special effects and 3D design. Another feature is non-standard processing of correspondence and a set of functions that are not available in any other application of this type. For example: When a new message arrives, a lock appears in the corner of the screen and says the accompanying phrase. You can choose other characters. And also when designing a letter, you can choose animation of letters and paper. And the shipment can be issued in the form of a paper airplane. When answering, use animated emoticons. Plus, almost all the professional functions of the above utilities are included.

What's wrong: The recipient must have this utility installed. Lack of Russian language. But if you wish, you can find a crack on the Internet.