Following the new ESR version of Firefox, upon which it is based, the latest Thunderbird is out too – with a fresh new look.
Thunderbird 128 is now available on Windows, macOS and Linux. It’s based on the latest Mozilla Firefox, a release we covered last week. This is the latest extended support release of Firefox, meaning that version 128 will receive security updated for approximately a year – which in turn means that Thunderbird will too.
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This release continues the overhaul of the messaging client’s user interface, which began in Thunderbird 102 and continued in the previous release. (We looked at this while it was still in beta, and before release the version number changed; it came out as Thunderbird 115.) Thunderbird 115 featured a revamped user interface dubbed Supernova.
The release announcement describes the new look in what strikes us as a slightly over-the-top way:
(Well, there isn’t so much potential in a planetary nebula for example… but hey, we are not averse to space-themed nomenclature.)
In this Nebula, more parts of the app use the card view, including the address book. There are three density settings under View, from “Relaxed” to “Compact.” The folder pane has been revamped, and not only should refresh faster but also show unread counts in the default view. There are options to always show full names with email addresses; to highlight more info with color, and to synchronize Thunderbird’s accent colors with those of the host OS; plus there’s now a significantly improved password manager.
There is better integration with OpenPGP, which was pulled into the main codebase, replacing the Enigmail extension, in version 102. It also integrates better with USB security hardware. Calendar support became built in then too, replacing the Lightning extension. Speaking of which, we were pleasantly surprised by Nebula’s handling of Google Calendars: click the New Calendar button, pick On the Network and provide an email address, and that’s it, done. We have read that MS Exchange Server integration is improved as well, but luckily for us we don’t have to deal with that these days. There’s also improved handling of Apple iCloud calendars and address books, and support for native Windows notifications.
Thunderbird is still a perfectly serviceable USENET news client as well as various email formats – click to enlarge
The Reg FOSS desk gives it a thumbs-up. As is pretty much always the case, some users were very unhappy with the last version’s new look. Personally, we liked it, and we still do in its latest revamp, but if you didn’t like “Supernova” then you’ll probably like “Nebula” even less. (Windows and Linux folks could try Betterbird instead, but there’s no Mac edition.)
And there’s a built-in chat client as well, which can handle XMPP, Matrix and some other protocols too – click to enlarge
The system requirements for Thunderbird 128 mirror those of Firefox 128, meaning that this version requires Windows 10 or macOS 10.15 “Catalina” or newer… so it may be time for users with older Macs to investigate Open Core Legacy Patcher.
Firefox 128 bumps system requirements for old boxes
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Why you might want an email client in the era of webmail
For now, Thunderbird 128 is not being offered as an upgrade for existing users. This will follow in time, possibly after the 128.0.1 release. If you grab it from the download page, it will happily upgrade existing copies of version 115 on Windows and macOS. Impatient Linux users can install the Snap package or unpack Mozilla’s .tar.bz2 into their home directory. For now, the version on Flathub is still the previous release, but we’re sure it’ll be updated soon.
The most important thing you should know is that the upgrade is a one-way process: once you migrate your profile to “Nebula,” the older version can no longer open it. If this is a critical app for you, best wait for at least the first point-release. ®
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