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I'm so glad someone wrote this up. I've been meaning to. Of all the tech changes I've made in the last few years, moving from Google Apps mail to Fastmail is t

by sivers 12y ago

I'm so glad someone wrote this up. I've been meaning to. Of all the tech changes I've made in the last few years, moving from Google Apps mail to Fastmail is the one that's made me the happiest, every day. The webmail is absolutely amazing. So fast, rock-sold, clean, minimal, focused. Having your webmail experience be completely ad-free and snoop-free, and, well, Google-free is priceless. Choose the Business email option - https://www.fastmail.fm/signup/business.html https://www.fastmail.fm/signup/business.html - if you want them to keep an automatic archive of the emails you download via POP. When I signed up under the Personal Email option I found they didn't have this archive option, but they switched me over to the business account on request. It's so worth the measly $15/year, considering the importance a good email/webmail experience, and how much it affects your every-day life. I've helped a few friends switch over, and they've all been thrilled with it.

ikusalic 12y ago
I have the same experience. I find the interface just beautiful and pleasure to use. The same is true when using it from phone. One of the best tool-related decisions I ever did.
eknkc 12y ago
Same here! Have been using fastmail for ~6 months now. I was hesitant, thought I'd miss push mail on iOS but it has been just fine. Also, there are some iOS mail clients that can push on FastMail (http://mymail.my.com http://mymail.my.com) I always hated Gmail's slow/weird IMAP behavior. Switched to Office365 at some point. Exchange was great but so freaking slow. FastMail has standard, fast IMAP. I also use the included DNS server for a couple of domains that had been lying around and the static file host for some http placeholder pages and stuff. I'd never go back to Google at this point.
- chmars 12y ago
  Fastmail seems to support IMAP Idle only. And IMAP Idle is not an option for mobile devices since the mail client has to keep the connection open all the time, so there goes your battery …
  - eknkc 12y ago
    Therefore you keep in in periodic fetch mode. 3rd party apps with push support do not drain battery. They keep a connection open on their servers, and use regular push notifications when something arrives. Has huge privacy concerns though.
masnick 12y ago
Amen. I switched to FastMail from Gmail more than a year ago and also absolutely love it. I highly recommend it for anyone dissatisfied with Gmail. A few things that may be helpful for people considering making the switch: - If FastMail's IMAP import doesn't work for you, this might (it worked for me): http://protips.maxmasnick.com/export-gmail-to-fastmail-or-any-email-provider-supporting-imap http://protips.maxmasnick.com/export-gmail-to-fastmail-or-an... - If you want to try FastMail "risk free" so you can switch back to Gmail if you don't like it: http://protips.maxmasnick.com/how-to-test-fastmail-risk-free-running-sent-slash-received-messages-through-gmail http://protips.maxmasnick.com/how-to-test-fastmail-risk-free... - My own writeup about my experience switching to FastMail from Gmail: http://www.maxmasnick.com/2013/07/19/fastmail/ http://www.maxmasnick.com/2013/07/19/fastmail/ (discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6069944 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6069944)
emiunet 12y ago
I have been using Google Apps and actually have an "evil" thought whenever I heard someone is switching off of Google: maybe, the more people leaving Google, the better its performance will be (for the ones who stay) (ie: their servers will be less busy)
mattkrea 12y ago
While I'll agree that the interface is beautifully simple why not host your own? Aside from software updates I've had to perform zero maintenance and find comfort in the fact that I host my own.
chmars 12y ago
Does Fastmail provide a matrix of all offers? I have for example never understood why business accounts have a USD 15/year management fee while family accounts have not …
- etix 12y ago
  As far as I know they do not. Your best option is to contact them: sales@fastmail.fm

by sivers 12y ago

ikusalic 12y ago

I have the same experience. I find the interface just beautiful and pleasure to use. The same is true when using it from phone. One of the best tool-related decisions I ever did.

eknkc 12y ago

Same here! Have been using fastmail for ~6 months now. I was hesitant, thought I'd miss push mail on iOS but it has been just fine. Also, there are some iOS mail clients that can push on FastMail (http://mymail.my.com http://mymail.my.com) I always hated Gmail's slow/weird IMAP behavior. Switched to Office365 at some point. Exchange was great but so freaking slow. FastMail has standard, fast IMAP. I also use the included DNS server for a couple of domains that had been lying around and the static file host for some http placeholder pages and stuff. I'd never go back to Google at this point.

chmars 12y ago
Fastmail seems to support IMAP Idle only. And IMAP Idle is not an option for mobile devices since the mail client has to keep the connection open all the time, so there goes your battery …
- eknkc 12y ago
  Therefore you keep in in periodic fetch mode. 3rd party apps with push support do not drain battery. They keep a connection open on their servers, and use regular push notifications when something arrives. Has huge privacy concerns though.

masnick 12y ago

Amen. I switched to FastMail from Gmail more than a year ago and also absolutely love it. I highly recommend it for anyone dissatisfied with Gmail. A few things that may be helpful for people considering making the switch: - If FastMail's IMAP import doesn't work for you, this might (it worked for me): http://protips.maxmasnick.com/export-gmail-to-fastmail-or-any-email-provider-supporting-imap http://protips.maxmasnick.com/export-gmail-to-fastmail-or-an... - If you want to try FastMail "risk free" so you can switch back to Gmail if you don't like it: http://protips.maxmasnick.com/how-to-test-fastmail-risk-free-running-sent-slash-received-messages-through-gmail http://protips.maxmasnick.com/how-to-test-fastmail-risk-free... - My own writeup about my experience switching to FastMail from Gmail: http://www.maxmasnick.com/2013/07/19/fastmail/ http://www.maxmasnick.com/2013/07/19/fastmail/ (discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6069944 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6069944)

emiunet 12y ago

I have been using Google Apps and actually have an "evil" thought whenever I heard someone is switching off of Google: maybe, the more people leaving Google, the better its performance will be (for the ones who stay) (ie: their servers will be less busy)

mattkrea 12y ago

While I'll agree that the interface is beautifully simple why not host your own? Aside from software updates I've had to perform zero maintenance and find comfort in the fact that I host my own.

chmars 12y ago

Does Fastmail provide a matrix of all offers? I have for example never understood why business accounts have a USD 15/year management fee while family accounts have not …

etix 12y ago
As far as I know they do not. Your best option is to contact them: sales@fastmail.fm