Mailbox 2.0.0 - app

Mailbox is a Gmail client that changes the way you manage your emails by keeping your inbox, message labels, and everything else in order.

A task manager within your emails

The philosophy behind Mailbox is similar to that of a task manager, where each email you receive is an outstanding action. Each message you get requires you to take an action relating to it: you can read the message, archive it, or go back to it later.

As soon as you start using Mailbox, it will automatically create folders in your Gmail inbox for all of those items that you want to read later or archive into subcategories.

There's also an option so that you can set selected emails to reappear in your Inbox, which can happen anywhere from a few minutes later until the following week.

Of course, Mailbox also lets you make the most of everyday actions such as replying to and forwarding emails, adding attachments and customizing your signature.

Scroll through all available actions

Mailbox offers many possibilities, but at present, there are only a few buttons on the screen. Where's the difference then? It's in the swipe gestures that you make to manage your inbox.

There are two possible gestures for swiping left to right: if you swipe a little ways down with your finger, it will archive the message, and if you swipe your finger all the way down the screen, it erases the messages. Swipe gestures from right to left let you postpone the message with a short swipe, and send the message to a custom folder with a long swipe.

This mode of management may seem complicated at first glance, but Mailbox does include a complete interactive tutorial that helps make the change less drastic and easier to manage. That said, with a little bit of practice, you'll forget what you did without it. 

What's not intuitive is the fact that Mailbox forces you to empty your Inbox folder, archiving the mail that you've already read.

If you're one of those people who like to have their inbox full of hundreds of emails, this might seem a little scary at first, but rest assured, at no point will you actually lose your messages.

Simple visualization, different images every day

The main function of Mailbox is to keep Gmail in order, and for this reason, the display should be clear and intuitive. In Mailbox, you'll find few buttons and few colors, but in their place are some large icons.

A particularly nice feature of Mailbox is the option to have a different image in your inbox every day once it's been completely emptied. These Instagram style images don't have a particular purpose, but it's a nice incentive to get your inbox cleared.

An interesting client that needs a little bit of practice

Mailbox is much more than an email client: it's a different way of adressing emails. According to it's developers, it's the most consistent way to manage mail for those people who receive hundreds of messages a day. To a certain extent, it forces you to adapt to a new way of looking at things and perhaps not everyone will be willing to accept it.

Although some decisions are questionable, such as the waiting lists or its incompatibility with traditional labels, it's undeniable that Mailbox is fun to use and really does help you get organized.

Download Mailbox 2.0.0