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Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's quite disappointing how skewed our perspective on software pricing is. I grew up in an era when compilers cost $1000; now people complain about $3 for an iPhone game. Given that a burger cost $5, I'm more than fine with sacrificing a burger each month for private email.
where are you getting a $5 burger??
If you have a spouse and/or kids, and you want them to use FastMail for the same reason you do, consider putting pressure on FastMail to offer a (reasonable) family plan. I’ve been a happy customer for a decade but they’ve raised their prices (which would affect new accounts) and do not offer a family plan so this year be my last year with them. Edit: typo
Is anyone from FastMail reading this by any chance?.. Another +1 here, currently considering FM for myself, spouse and/or kids, and while for a single person it's bearable, for 4 it becomes overly expensive so we'd have to look for alternatives.
One reason I switched to Fastmail is it's just folders, not labels. I HATED labels in Gmail. It never works right with external clients, even if you use plugins in Thunderbird or try to use labels like they are folders. I gave up and basically used the web interface until I switched to FastMail. Will folders ever become mandatory? If so, maybe I should finally give in and host emails myself. It can't be more painful…
The only service that does not support folders properly is Gmail and the actual problem with Gmail is that they're abusing IMAP folders for emulating their labels. Fastmail has always been very standards compliant and I don't see them abusing the standard without a way to turn the behavior off.
So I don't really understand the drama. Also note that a lot of users, including myself, are craving for labels ;-)
It is unclear to me how this works with IMAP clients. Are these labels still exposed as folders over IMAP?
If so, I assume messages get duplicated, just as with Gmail, therefore the client will need special hacks to deal with it, just as with Gmail.
Too expensive.
That they don't chase free users is an advantage to those of us who pay. For about $50 per year, I get rock solid, feature-rich email as well as fast support from real people who are informed and empowered. It's not for everyone, but it's worth it if you value your mail and time.
My only complaint is that the more they extend JMAP the more I want a dedicated email client that supports it, and none do as far as I am aware.
One reason I switched to Fastmail is it's just folders, not labels. I HATED labels in Gmail. It never works right with external clients, even if you use plugins in Thunderbird or try to use labels like they are folders. I gave up and basically used the web interface until I switched to FastMail. Will folders ever become mandatory? If so, maybe I should finally give in and host emails myself. It can't be more painful…
I've tried unsuccessfully to maintain folder/label systems over the years, and I always end up having to search my emails anyway. So why bother with trying to make a consistent folder/label structure? I'm much more likely to remember some key words from an invoice than remember which labels I would've applied.
If you have a spouse and/or kids, and you want them to use FastMail for the same reason you do, consider putting pressure on FastMail to offer a (reasonable) family plan. I’ve been a happy customer for a decade but they’ve raised their prices (which would affect new accounts) and do not offer a family plan so this year be my last year with them. Edit: typo
One reason I switched to Fastmail is it's just folders, not labels. I HATED labels in Gmail. It never works right with external clients, even if you use plugins in Thunderbird or try to use labels like they are folders. I gave up and basically used the web interface until I switched to FastMail. Will folders ever become mandatory? If so, maybe I should finally give in and host emails myself. It can't be more painful…
I can't find the blog post, but I read one once that said, basically: you don't need labels or folders. You need your inbox, the archive, and trash. Once you've tended to an email, either archive it (and just use your search function later), or delete it. I've tried unsuccessfully to maintain folder/label systems over the years, and I always end up having to search my emails anyway. So why bother with trying to make…
As you mentioned, once a message is 'consumed,' it just gets archived. But the folder system (combined with sieve filters) is what makes dealing with a ton of incoming email extremely pleasant.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
This is a big reason why I list cheaper alternatives to Fastmail whenever the topic of emails comes here. If your needs are more than one mailbox (not aliases), then Fastmail soon becomes prohibitively expensive. A few years ago, when asked about cheaper pricing plans, Fastmail replied that it has no plans (no pun intended) to go cheaper or offer cheaper plans. There are other alternatives that are cheaper and focus…
I suspect Fastmail can't afford to offer cheaper plans. I bet their common customer is a small business and offering cheap family plans would put a huge dent in their revenues. Also, I suspect it would attract people that need tech support. I'd bet a really nice dinner their cfo has modeled the numbers.
Also, a family plan doesn't have to be 4x cheaper, even a 2x discount might do the trick if we're talking a family of 3-5.
I highly doubt this would put a "huge dent" in their revenues if all the nerds who are currently using their standard plans solo will invite their family members in and would start paying a little bit more than they currently do (e.g. 1.5x); what it would do though is it would earn them some positive karma and visibility on hn, reddit and other corners of the net.
Might as well put it here since Fastmail doesn’t come up often. Does anyone find Fastmail’s spam detection to be pretty mediocre? I usually get a few obviously spam emails a week in my inbox. The volume is low so I don’t mind it but that’s really the one thing I miss from Gmail.