The Mac can be a wonderful platform, as many of its users will tell you. Developers constantly release apps that take on the first-party selection in macOS Tahoe, and it's easy to get lost in the noise. Chief amongst them is the frustrating Mail app.
So when I saw that a former Apple software engineer, who worked on Mail, had srtuck out on his own, I was immediately curious about how they would go it alone. Turns out Neil Jhaveri’s Mimestream might just be the slickest, swiftest email app on Mac, and you owe it to yourself to give it a try — especially if you use Gmail.
The Inbox In The Room
To Apple's credit, Mail has grown to become much more useful in recent years, and if it’s working for you, then it’s right there for you. But if you’re using Gmail, you’ll want to take a look at Mimestream. Perhaps the greatest compliment I can give the app is that it feels like using an app that Apple itself built, which is perhaps unsurprising given Jhaveri’s history.
I’ve simply never used an email app that’s this quick, because it leans on the Gmail API. That means as you get an email to your Gmail account, you’re not waiting for it to appear in Mimestream - it’s just there. It’s been a godsend for running my business out of, because it’s so reliable - no sync issues, no deep diving into settings, and no forced downloads of messages eating up valuable storage.
Gmail’s API already offers inbox Categories and the option to add labels, and those instantly transfer across to Mimestream, too. Social emails go to the relevant inbox, and you can filter by label. Server-side Gmail filters can be managed within the app, too, meaning it’s rare you’ll need to go to the web version of the app.
I’ve long used email apps like Spark, but Mimestream is just so sleek that it removes all friction. My favorite feature? Gmail’s own search functionality is a cut above the likes of Outlook and others, and it’s replicated here beautifully.
Mimestream is only getting better, too. As an example, the upcoming Snooze functionality will be a big win for night owls like myself who love to work when the family is asleep, saving the inbox from looking cuttered until I’m ready to deal with it.
It’s Great On iPhone, Too
There’s already a well-stacked roadmap for Mimestream, but I’ve been lucky enough to test the iPhone version early.
Not only does it somehow feel more useful than Apple Mail, Spark, Notion Mail and more on mobile, but it’s still got things like search baked in, even at this early stage.
There’s still a long way to go, though - the development team has said it’s considering support for IMAP accounts from the likes of iCloud or Yahoo, but for now it’s essentially just a Gmail app.
Downloading emails is tricky, too, because of the way the Gmail API works, and since Gmail doesn’t include features like scheduled send, these aren’t coming anytime soon.
Still, if you’re looking for an email app for the Mac, the $50 per year for an individual (on up to 5 devices) is well worth it for me.
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