Essential E-mail Freebies
This blog entry was posted on: 25 July 2010.
E-mail is so commonplace nowadays many people forget the number of free alternatives available, from Web mail providers to anti-spam software. It’s likely you’re already the owner of an e-mail address (or multiple addresses), but there may be more on offer than you first realise. View our round-up of the best e-mail freebies below.
Free Web mail providers:
Hotmail – We will begin with Microsoft’s iconic Hotmail since this is the service, along with Yahoo!, which kick-started a global interest in free e-mail on the Web. Now part of Windows Live, Hotmail is an easy-to-use service with excellent spam protection and mobile device support. POP3 access is also available if you prefer to download messages to a program such as Outlook or Thunderbird.
Yahoo! Mail – Yahoo! is another global e-mail powerhouse with a similar level of popularity to Hotmail. This is an excellent choice if you wish to access e-mail from any location and seamlessly integrates with other Yahoo! services, such as Calendar and Messenger. The interface at Yahoo! is impressive and mimics a classic e-mail client layout, with preview pane beneath the list of messages. This makes browsing and organising messages a breeze. Anti-spam functionality ensures rogue messages are filtered before they reach the inbox, plus there’s a solid and easy-to-use address book to hold contacts in.
Gmail – Google’s e-mail service is a relative newcomer in comparison to Hotmail and Yahoo!, but its generous disk quota (over 7GB), anti-spam technology and mobile applications ensures wherever you are in the world, you can quickly access your e-mail. Not only does Google provide Web mail, they also support free POP3 access, enabling users to download mail directly to their computer.
GMX - A fully featured and user-friendly e-mail provider offering a massive 5GB storage space, POP3/IMAP access free of charge and powerful anti-spam utilities. The interface at GMX is particularly impressive with functionality not unlike what you might find in desktop e-mail.
A word about free POP3 e-mail…
Unfortunately, the costs involved in providing POP3 services free of charge are very high (one of the main reasons few notable providers exist). Gmail stands out from the crowd for obvious reasons, but if you’re in the market for something different, Lavabit offers 128MB of storage space for low-volume usage. Gawab.com offers a much larger 10GB of storage plus virus and spam protection. Web mail is also available here in case you need to access mail when on the move.
Anti-spam and e-mail security freeware:
If you are finding yourself drowning in spam, some of the following may help:
Comodo Anti-Spam - This free download claims to deliver ‘total spam elimination’ and supports Outlook, Eudora and other popular e-mail clients.
Spamihilator - Spamihilator inspects incoming e-mail to determine its authenticity. If messages are deemed to be spam, the program will filter these automatically. It functions with all popular e-mail clients, including Outlook and Thunderbird.
Iconix - Phishing e-mails (i.e. messages pretending to be from your bank) can be difficult to spot to the untrained eye. This freeware tool will help identify if a message is real or fake. It functions with Windows Live Hotmail, AOL Webmail, Yahoo! Mail, Outlook Express and many others.
Free e-mail clients:
Web-mail is ideal if you’re continually on the move and using different computers. But nothing beats the power of a standalone e-mail client, especially if tend to use the computer at home or in the office.
Thunderbird is a popular alternative to Microsoft Outlook but lacks organisational features, especially a calendar. However, its ability to handle e-mail is second to none and with a great search utility, tagging, junk mail controls and filtering, plus the ability to handle multiple accounts, it’s not difficult to see why.
Eudora - A veteran e-mail client with a loyal user-base. Eudora is a solid choice and packs an impressive list of features. The company behind the software (QUALCOMM) is developing an open source version, which is currently in development. Stay tuned for this!
Incredimail is worth investigating if you prefer a more lively approach to your e-mail. Just be prepared for ‘emoticons’ galore, 3D effects, animations and sounds. Who says e-mail has to be serious?
And finally, if you require an e-mail account for a short period of time so you can register for a service without using your primary address, try 10 Minute Mail. It could save you plenty of spam headaches!