ZDNET’s key takeaways
- The Proton Mail desktop consumer is on the market now for Linux, MacOS, and Home windows.
- With a lovely UI, all of the options you want, and a really shallow studying curve, this e-mail consumer is an impressive choice in your private e-mail administration.
- The Proton Mail desktop consumer requires a paid Proton Mail account (which begins at $3.99/month).
I have been hopping from e-mail consumer to e-mail consumer on Linux, and in the end been sad with one thing about every app I’ve tried. And consider me after I inform you that I’ve tried all of them: Thunderbird, Evolution, Claws Mail, Geary, KMail, Mutt, Balsa, Pine, Slypheed, and Trojita.
Though among the above come very near assembly my wants, every of them have their very own distinctive points. Do not get me fallacious, I do know the proper e-mail consumer does not exist. However I need a software that features the options I want (and no extra) with a UI that is trendy, clear, and may be relied on to cope with a number of accounts and heavy visitors.
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After I came upon that Proton Mail had launched their desktop consumer for Linux, you’ll be able to guess I used to be keen to present it a attempt. Perceive, I do not actually use my Proton e-mail tackle (and by no means actually have). I’ve my personal domains that I exploit for almost all of my e-mail in addition to a Google account to fill different wants.
I additionally knew going into this that to make use of my IMAP servers, I would have to put in the Proton Bridge, which meant the emails from my domains could be routed via the Proton servers. When the Proton Bridge was first launched, there was lots of concern concerning its safety. Since then, these considerations have subsided and each report and account I’ve learn in regards to the Bridge has been constructive.
With that in thoughts, I put in Proton Mail and determined to kick it round with a brand new Proton e-mail tackle (the trial for the desktop consumer solely lasts 5 days) to determine if this will likely be my new e-mail consumer.
I used to be instantly impressed. The UI may be very properly designed (in contrast to so many Linux e-mail shoppers) and simple to make use of. I additionally discovered loads of settings obtainable (within the “All Settings” sections), together with privateness, folders & labels, filters, ahead and auto-reply, domains, and encryption & keys.
The one caveat I’ve discovered with Proton mail thus far is that using third-party SMTP providers is restricted to the Proton For Marketing strategy (which is nearly twice the value for the person plan). Meaning I will not have the ability to use my area’s SMTP servers. That is one thing I can probably dwell with.
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A few of the options I like about Proton Mail embody:
- The fashionable UI makes navigating e-mail straightforward and simple on the eyes
- Scheduled sending of e-mail
- Intuitive keyboard shortcuts
- Straightforward folder and label administration (with drag and drop help and notifications)
- Easy e-mail filtering (with Choose All, which is so useful)
- Constructed-in logs
- Auto-forwarding for Gmail
- Anti-phishing
- Computerized tracker safety
- Dialog grouping
- Auto-delete trash and spam after 30 days
- Auto-unsubscribe
- 2FA help
The Proton Mail desktop consumer does embody the Calendar app as properly, however I exploit the Google Calendar and Proton Calendar is one-way, read-only with Google. That is high-quality by me as a result of I want to have my e-mail and calendar apps separate.
All of it boils down to 1 query: is Proton Mail well worth the $3.99/month cost, when there are many free e-mail shoppers for Linux? In the mean time, I am on the “no” aspect of that fence, however each time I swap from Proton Mail again to my present default consumer, Geary, I discover I miss the Proton Mail UI.
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If I needed to guess, I’ll most definitely find yourself paying to make use of this desktop app, just because it checks extra bins than most different Linux e-mail shoppers. Proton Mail gives simply the correct stability between characteristic set and trendy design that offers it the sting over most apps of its variety. We’ll see what occurs when this trial interval ends, however I am pretty sure of the end result.
If you happen to’re enthusiastic about testing the Proton Mail consumer on Linux, be sure you first create a Proton E-mail account after which obtain both the .deb or .rpm file in your distribution. As soon as you’ve got put in the app, log in along with your Proton Mail account credentials and luxuriate in that contemporary new app scent.
