Popular Email Client Spark Gets Major Redesign For Mac, Moves to Subscription Model

[adammusic]

As on current version you can customize your toolbar in Mail.app too.

How?

 

[Jigga Beef]

I wonder if any of the comments will be people voicing their displeasure about subscription software.

 

[applefanboysince93]

Apple's push APIs are private and only available to iCloud-based accounts. If you want to use Mail.app and have push on iOS, you can only get it with iCloud. This is why every client implements their own push system.

That is annoying, really annoying. I thought they used push IMAP, but it’s based on XMPP that I see

I swear Yahoo used to somehow get that Push API access. I'd guess it's more Google withholding than Apple denying.

 

[LV426]

I had an electrician do some work on my house this morning. He did a good job. I paid him, and if there's a problem he will come back and fix it. Guess what? I didn't set up a freaking subscription with him!

 

[prizm]

Buh Bye Spark. It was nice knowing you.

 

[mdnz]

€70 per year to read your email. Been a while since I read something that funny.

 

[posguy99]

I swear Yahoo used to somehow get that Push API access. I'd guess it's more Google withholding than Apple denying.

Apple had a long-standing agreement with Yahoo. You will recall that Jobs pushed Yahoo push email in a keynote.

 

[WWP99]

For me, I'm not paying a subscription just to have email functionality that is pretty robust on the native Mail appe. Your mileage may differ.

 

[roland.g]

I have Spark and use it. I don't use the Smart features and I use Apple Mail for my iCloud mail and Spark for my Gmail. This way I can separate the accounts on my Mac. Given that the new version includes a Free version, I will update to that but I have no need for a subscription for something that doesn't do anything for me.

 

[tominco]

I'm ok paying once for a piece of software, and occasionally later for upgrades, but I'm totally opposed to subscription based software. I get they want a constant income stream, but I don't want a constant expense stream.

I will continue to stick with Thunderbird, no matter how long in the tooth it's getting.

 

[cateye]

I swear Yahoo used to somehow get that Push API access. I'd guess it's more Google withholding than Apple denying.

There is a standards-compliant method for implementing push. Apple's version not only relies on private APIs, but does not conform to the standard. Apple needs to explicitly allow other companies to take advantage of that service. To date, they have allowed (and since revoked) Yahoo's ability to do that, and allow a small provider called FastMail to use it. That's it.

Think of it something like CarPlay. There's nothing particularly special about what CarPlay does in the background. It relies mostly on the automaker to set up certain predictable hooks into their UI/UX that Apple then takes advantage of. However, for an app to present on your car's dash, only Apple can flip the bit that says, "this app is available to CarPlay." Apple has, to this point, been very reluctant to allow most email providers to take advantage of its push service. Why? Only Apple knows.

 

[djstile]

I believe Gmail / Google is preferring to use the Gmail API over IMAP for notifications, hence it doesn't exist? Whilst Spark does polling on their servers.

Yeah I think that is true. Someone else here also posted that Apple hasn't opened up the API to allow for Push notifications to the mail.app but I haven't researched that at all.

 

[small_CAPS]

Been using Postbox for a bit, 1-time license fee and that's it.

The Power Email App

Postbox is the power email app for busy professionals, like you.

www.postbox-inc.com

 

[rpmurray]

I don't mind subscriptions so much as the mandatory opt-in to automatic renewal, especially if you can't cancel and get a prorated refund.

 

[Steve121178]

Spark is so good that I am happy to subscribe. I don't begrudge them earning a living from their work and Spark has been my go-to Mail app for years.

Just wish their Apple Watch app was better.

And the new macOS client needs some work here and there but they'll improve it. They always do.

 

[GeoStructural]

How?

Hold on it and just drag buttons in, out, or around.

 

[ducknalddon]

Judging by the comments here this far, I would say that the marketing team at Readdle seriously misread its potential customer base.

I doubt it. My guess is most of the people complaining in this forum were never going to buy it anyway.

If you want to see how this works for the developer just take a look at Adobe's share price over the years since they went subscription only.

 

[dredlew]

I'll take your bait: Because for ages Mail.app had serious issues interacting with both Outlook-based and Google-based email accounts, including lost emails, inability to fetch email on a timely basis, and lost credentials. Those issues are lagely fixed (although not entirely), but I long ago left Mail.app behind and see little reason to come back to it. Also, I dislike Mail.app's user interface and it lacks several organizational features (particularly on MacOS) I've come to depend on in other email clients, including pinning and prioritizing email.

Spark is one of the few clients that was (and continues to be, if you read the article) free across iOS, iPadOS, and MacOS. That it now offers a Windows client is even more gravy for someone like me that likes its workflow and appreciates a unified interface across mobile and desktop devices.

Another thing to note is that Apple has never opened its private APIs for push email, and the iOS/iPadOS clients don't support IDLE, which means if Push email (and its battery savings) are important to you, you either need to use iCloud-based accounts exclusively, or use a client that has its own push implementation, like Spark.

Finally: I use email primarily for business. I have a personal iCloud-based account, and then several Google Workspace-based accounts that are high volume. Spark allows me to receive and organize that email in a way that is intelligent to me, rather than fighting Mail.app's conventions that feel very under-developed and basic.

Whether or not I will subscribe or continue to use the free version I have no idea. Need to explore the new version better and see whether the subscription-only features are important to me or not. But this knee-jerk against subscription software is tilting at windmills. Apple itself is actively lobbying developers to adopt the model. You're going to see Apple start to gatekeep more and more of their own software and services behind paywalls as well.

That's why Spark works for me. It may not work for you. Isn't it nice we both have a choice that works for us?

Spark has never properly worked in an Outlook environment despite me making multipe reports about that for years. They refused to make this work and it doesn't work to this day. Apple's Mail on the other hand works a lot better with Exchange. So I find it very odd that you would critize Mail for this when Spark completely sucks in a traditional business environment.

 

[Steve121178]

Spark has never properly worked in an Outlook environment despite me making multipe reports about that for years. They refused to make this work and it doesn't work to this day. Apple's Mail on the other hand works a lot better with Exchange. So I find it very odd that you would critize Mail for this when Spark completely sucks in a traditional business environment.

I've been using 3 Exchange accounts in Spark for years, one with my personal domain and it works just fine.

 

[SpotOnT]

i think it's weird that people think they're entitled to get something for free... that developers shouldn't get paid for their work. Especially on a product like email that you use 800 times a day.

I don’t think people feel entitled to free software so much as they want the option to purchase a perpetual license.

With a perpetual license you get to decide when to upgrade. You get to decide when the new features are worth it to you, when it fits within your budget etc.

The subscription model is like working with a loan shark. Miss a monthly payment and they come over to your house and break your legs (ie turn off the systems you need to manage/run your company/life). No thanks.

 

[cateye]

Spark has never properly worked in an Outlook environment despite me making multipe reports about that for years. They refused to make this work and it doesn't work to this day. Apple's Mail on the other hand works a lot better with Exchange. So I find it very odd that you would critize Mail for this when Spark completely sucks in a traditional business environment.

To be clear, I did mention in my original email that the problems Mail.app had with Outlook and Google-based accounts were fixed, so far as I was aware. I hear of some sporadic problems still, but nothing like around the time of Mavericks when even Apple acknowledged it was fully broken. I'm glad it works better now.

I do not currently use Spark with an Exchange account, but my wife does and has no issues. But as with all things Exchange, there are so many variables, it's hard to know exactly where the problem may lie.

 

[SpotOnT]

Everyone complaining about subscription models. In the next breath, "I'm so sick of all these ads..."

That would be funny if subscription services didn’t include ads or data mine the geez out of you.

 

[ProfessionalFan]

I paid for Spark. I don’t plan to pay for it again. Uninstalled And good bye.

Wait, how did you pay before? It was free.

 

[Chateaunole-du-Pape]

Anybody using Mimestream for their Mac? Just wondering how do you like it? I know they will be paid as well, but they seem big on privacy.

Yes, I have been using it since I got a new MBA in July. I really like it. It's the only app I have seen so far that replicates Gmail's feature of splitting your mail into 5 categories (Primary, Social, Updates, Promotions and Forums, if memory serves me). Makes it easy to stay on top of what's truly important while keeping everything else behind the scenes yet readily accessible if I need it. At the same time, it allows me to avoid the Gmail web interface, which I really dislike.

It initially looked like I'd be able to do the same thing with Outlook, but I couldn't get it to work. Once Mimestream goes to a paid model, I'll try Outlook again, or see if I can replicate the same behavior in the Mac's native Mail client, but if not, I'll probably pay for Mimestream, unless it's prohibitively expensive.

 

[BearsFan34]

I dumped Spark. These companies are greedy - if we all had subscription models for every app and service, we'd be paying hundreds of dollars a month. Spark wasn't that great anyways, you had to view emails in a thread view, which I don't like and there's no setting to disable it. They force you to use something they think is great, which is super annoying.

This remains my #1 complaint. Personal preference here, but I do NOT want threaded view in email…EVER. Bad experiences with other clients where my dumb…rear-end meant to delete a reply or a forward inside a thread, and instead deleted the ENTIRE original email and everything with it -- only to have lost it forever due to my own parameters for deletion, yes -- but I will not make that mistake again. No.More.Threaded.Views.

It is disappointing that Readdle can't offer a checkbox to turn threading off or on. They just did an overhaul of their entire app -- they could've have added that option in?