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Dropbox closing Carousel and Mailbox

blogs.dropbox.com

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Re: Dropbox closing Carousel and Mailbox

#241

That's abrupt. It wasn't that long ago I was bribed into downloading Mailbox by some notification in the Dropbox app. Bummer too, because I really like it. They're not even going to leave it and let it slowly decay until time takes it's toll and nature wins like with Sparrow. "As you evaluate alternatives, you might consider the stock apps like iOS Mail (Apple) and Gmail (Android)" I guess they didn't have much time…

I ctrl-F'd "Android" - Mailbox is the best email app for Android other than Inbox - which doesn't work with my school's Google Apps configuration.

Shame that there are no other good Android apps, but iOS has a few.

Re: Dropbox closing Carousel and Mailbox

#242

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, it's frustrating. I was using Sparrow until it got acquired and then shut down. Then switched to Mailbox... which then got acquired... Whoops. I ended up so frustrated I created my own email client in my spare time and half accidentally got into YC S14 haha. You can check it out here: http://www.slidemailapp.com I'll admit, as a previous poster said, it's not without it's flaws but we try hard and we really do…

What's your end goal with this? Surely it must be getting acquired by one of the big email providers.

Yup. Acquired for $101M then subsequently shut down in 1-2 years (just kidding of course).

I don't know if it's in my best interest to answer this publicly, but screw it. The honest answer is I'm not entirely too sure, but an acquisition is always on the table for any startup IMO. I think whenever you ask a founder, "If someone offered you $100M, would you take it?", it's a pretty loaded question.

There's really three outcomes to a startup: They die, they get acquired, they IPO. The thing is, if you think your company is valued at $1M and someone offers you $100M, of course you're most likely going to take it. It's 100x what you were expecting and it would be unwise not to take it. However, if you deep down believe that your company is worth more or can be worth more than the offering price and you have the proof to back it up, then it'd be unwise to take the offer.

For me, I strongly believe that email has A LOT to go. I mean, it's nearly 2016 and I still can't connect my Dropbox to my Gmail app client or send stuff into Evernote / Trello? Given all the time we spend on email, shouldn't we at least have some better automation / AI integration by now? Something smarter and more contextually aware that can make my life a bit easier?

So many people use email in the world. Literally everyone that has a Facebook account has to have an email account. I think the reason why we haven't seen a billion dollar plus company yet is that it's very ubiquitous and it's hard to build solutions for the masses. So companies give up, sell out, close down, and then we have to start again at ground zero.

So to your question, what's the end goal? Well, if we're right about our beliefs, hopefully we can become the next billion dollar company. If not, then it's the other two options: get acquired or die. Which one will it be? No idea, but we're just working our butts off right now.

Re: Dropbox closing Carousel and Mailbox

#243
The message from this: outside of backup, Dropbox can't/won't sustain a small scale but profitable business for the long term (e.g. Basecamp style).

So don't even consider adopting and trusting their new "Paper" collaboration offering.

Re: Dropbox closing Carousel and Mailbox

#246
post #98

Can anyone explain to me, someone who's more than happy with GMail, what these apps offer that aren't being offered by Google/Microsoft? It seems like Mailbox had a loyal following but I guess my email use is just not sophisticated enough to understand.

I use Outlook. The thing I like about it is that it integrates my gmail and icloud accounts nicely. Native iOS app doesn't work well with GMail because you won't get notifications for new mail. And the GMail app doesn't work well with my icloud.com email - or iCloud doesn't forward to GMail reliably.

So I use the MS Outlook app and both are integrated seamlessly.

Re: Dropbox closing Carousel and Mailbox

#248

Ugh. Yet another intriguing email startup being acquihired and killed off by a more-established tech company (see also: Sparrow). It's 2015 and I still bounce around email clients every couple months because all of the major options have substantial flaws.

I co-founded ITA Software and have been using some of the proceeds from the sale to Google to fund an email startup. ( http://inky.com ) The challenges outlined in this thread are all accurate. If you're thinking about putting effort (or money) behind an email startup, think again. I simply don't believe it's doable for a normal startup (i.e., one without a crazy rich guy plowing money into it until it's good enough)…

Do you plan to add PGP support?
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