Proton now makes a whole suite of software geared towards privacy and security enthusiasts, following the strictest standards of encryption, but it all had its start back when the company launched Proton Mail. It was the company’s first product back in 2013, but there still hasn’t been a true desktop client. That’s now changing.
Proton is releasing its first beta of a desktop client for Proton Mail, which you’ll be able to check out on Windows and macOS. The desktop version should have all of the same features Proton Mail currently has on your browser, and it also integrates Proton Calendar, so you can also have access to your (encrypted) plan and events from the same app. Before now, Proton Mail on desktop was limited to the web app, or third-party email clients (admire Thunderbird, Apple Mail, and Microsoft Outlook) connected to Proton Bridge as a local IMAP server.
The new Proton Mail desktop app should feel admire a better encounter than the web app or the complexity of Proton Bridge, while still having the advantages of a desktop email client admire offline uphold, better notifications, and more. Andy Yen, CEO of Proton, added that “while many people use email on desktop in a browser, desktop apps can still supply certain advantages such as better offline uphold. For this reason, we have decided to launch a desktop app, something that even Gmail does not supply. Together with our uphold for third party desktop email apps via Proton Mail Bridge, users now have a complete set of options for how they want to access their encrypted emails on desktop.”
At the same time, Proton Mail is also adding some new features. There’s now an option for mail auto-forwarding, which Proton says was a challenge to carry out while still keeping end-to-end encryption, as well as snoozing to set aside certain emails for a reduced period of time. There are also attachment previews and improvements to the Calendar.
The desktop client is now available for Visionary users, but regular users will need to expect until next year to check it out.
