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Thunderbird for Android 8.0 Takes Flight

and 89 responses

Just over two years ago, we announced our plans to bring Thunderbird to Android by taking K-9 Mail under our wing. The journey took a little longer than we had originally anticipated and there was a lot to learn along the way, but the wait is finally over! For all of you who have ever asked “when is Thunderbird for Android coming out?”, the answer is – today! We are excited to announce that the first stable release of Thunderbird for Android is out now, and we couldn’t be prouder of the newest, most mobile member of the Thunderbird family.

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Thanks for Helping Thunderbird for Android Fly

Thank you for being a part of the community and sharing this adventure on Android with us! We’re especially grateful to all of you who have helped us test the beta and release candidate images. Your feedback helped us find and fix bugs, test key features, and polish the stable release. We hope you enjoy using the newest Thunderbird, now and for a long time to come!

Tags: Android

89 responses

Gregorio Espadas wrote on

I’ve been waiting for this for a LONG time. THANKS!

prince wrote on

Why this is not available on f-droid .
I am using thunderbird from long time and also i am firefox user from more than 15 years .
We need all mozilla app on f- droid

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

It’s now available on F-Droid! We’ve updated the links in the blog. 🙂

Edward Harding wrote on

Fantastic guys, very well done. So now your mobile client has the first line/s of the mail message in the mail preview but your desktop clients doesn’t. Isn’t there quite a disparity there? Will this “feature” be coming to your desktop client any time soon?

Isn’t there a bug about this that has been open for, oh I don’t know, something like almost 20 years?

https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=307070

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

This would be a good suggestion for the Thunderbird thread of Mozilla Connect: https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/idb-p/ideas/label-name/thunderbird

k wrote on

It was so disappointing to not find “Customise From Address” in Thunderbird mobile/Android. I don’t know about others, but at least for me it has been one major reason to continue using Thunderbird on desktop and I was looking forward for this feature to be available on mobile as well.

It’s a miracle feature for people with custom domain based emails and having to send mails or reply from various email addresses and you just killed it.

Or it’s not final? I mean if that’s the case then I am more worried now that you all have literally just re-released a skinned K-9 :/

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

There may be some features that will come over from desktop, and suggestions like this are a great thing to have in Mozilla Connect, which has a new Thunderbird for Android label! https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/idb-p/ideas/label-name/thunderbird%20android

And we’ve tried to be very transparent about our development process, that after we acquired K-9 Mail in 2022, it eventually would become Thunderbird for Android. And even though there was a recent beta period, for the past two years, K-9 Mail has been the unofficial beta for what eventually became Thunderbird for Android 8.0

petesim wrote on

I hope this will become a built-in app for some vendors like Nothing or Huawei! Will Lineage switch to it?

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Unfortunately, that’s a question for the Lineage folks! But that would be a neat possibility!

M wrote on

Congratualtions! It’s such a joy to use. Does the beta auto upgrade?

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Unfortunately, the beta doesn’t auto upgrade but it is very easy to import your settings from the beta version into the stable release! https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/thunderbird-android-import#w_how-to-import-from-k-9-or-other-thunderbird-for-android-apps

Nathan Zachary wrote on

Thank you for all your hard work on bringing Thunderbird to Android! If we want to file bug reports specific to Thunderbird for Android (as opposed to desktop platforms), should they be issues on this GitHub page?

https://github.com/thunderbird/thunderbird-android/issues

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Yes! Bugs for Thunderbird for Android go to the GitHub Issues page you linked to. Thanks in advance for reporting any bugs you find!

adam wrote on

Still wait for dark mode for desktop version maybe in 5 years

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

The Dark Reader feature support has just landed in Daily, if you’d like to help us test it! https://thunderbird.topicbox.com/groups/daily/T856d214eb9e907c4

JR Heuwing wrote on

I hate using 2 apps when one is possible. So my suggestion is to add a calendar function that supports caldav. Just like the windows/linux versions do.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

This is something that has come up few times, and its possible it could be added in the future. This is also a great suggestion for Mozilla Connect! https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/idb-p/ideas/label-name/thunderbird%20android

Haywood Jablome wrote on

If you release a version that doesn’t collect all the data on my phone (according to google play), I might consider installing it.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

If you don’t want any data collected at all, K-9 Mail might be a good option!

Askan wrote on

Great news!!!

How can I upgrade my Desktop Thunderbird 128.3 to 128.4 (flathub)?
This is needed in order to take advantage of the “Export to Mobile” function, which would make my life easier.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Hi! We asked the team and if you run the command ‘flatpak update’ it should put you on the newest point release!

wroot wrote on

Great! Although, when i did import settings from K9-Mail, it only shows me Outbox folder. It can send emails and they appear in the Inbox in K9, but TB is not working correctly. I guess will try with fresh account setup.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

We saw some people on Reddit experiencing this too. We hope a fresh account setup fixed it,and if it still occurs, please report it to our GitHub Issues page: https://github.com/thunderbird/thunderbird-android/issues

Kuprakas wrote on

Thank you for doing what you do, it really means a lot

Pavel Kirilin wrote on

Thank you very much for all the work you’ve done. I was highly anticipating a good mail client on android. I use Thunderbird on my Linux desktop for more than 4 years now and can say for sure, it’s the best mail client I’ve ever used.

vic wrote on

Great news!!!

As Thunderbird user in my GNU/Linux system, and K9 in my Android, I’m really happy to read this!!
Waiting to F-droid to update in my device…

Sharing the news in my little blog for spanish speaker community:

* https://victorhckinthefreeworld.com/2024/10/30/ya-disponible-thunderbird-8-para-android/

Greatings and thanks a lot for your work!!!

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Thank you so much as always! And Thunderbird for Android is now on F-Droid! We’ve updated the blog too 🙂

JAcob Thompson wrote on

This is badaaaasss

Don Reba wrote on

Good news! But… how do I move from the beta to the release and keep all my settings?

Mike Davies wrote on

Long-time TB user on desktop. Downloaded app on phone but not transferred data yet.
Just wondering if here is a plan to facilitate importing data from other email clients? My wife uses Bluemail on Android and I’m trying to persuade her to switch to TB.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

This would be a great suggestion for Mozilla Connect!https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/idb-p/ideas/label-name/thunderbird%20android

Ben wrote on

Huge accomplishment and amazing app!! Been really enjoying the beta version and so happy that this is stable for so many Android computers across the world. Excited for it to keep growing!

John wrote on

Tried to install. It can’t pass Google’s Advanced Security requirements so I uninstalled.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

This is something we’re hoping to remedy. You can follow the progress here: https://github.com/thunderbird/thunderbird-android/issues/7303

Robert Kaombe wrote on

I’m stuck on ” Configuration not found…Configure manually ” this button is not responsive, tapping on this button or link nothing happens.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

That’s definitely not an expected behavior. We’re sorry you’re experiencing this – would you mind reporting this bug at https://github.com/thunderbird/thunderbird-android/issues ?

Tom wrote on

Hi, im very excited about the release of the mobile, wonder if the RSS feature would also be added to the mobile?

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

This would be a great suggestion for the Thunderbird for Android label on Mozilla Connect! https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/idb-p/ideas/label-name/thunderbird%20android

cr0wtom wrote on

Any plans for an iOS release?

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Yes! We are planning to develop an iOS app, though work won’t start on it until next year. We’ll keep everyone posted on our progress here in the blog!

Saiwal wrote on

The new design turns out to be inefficient and difficult to use on mobile when a user has multiple accounts on a single domain, the thumbnails all show the same initials which are difficult to tell apart and becomes a game of guessing to switch to the correct account. K9 previously had an elegant way of switching where it showed the full address of the account you wanted to switch. Please consider revisiting these design decisions which are unfriendly for mobile users.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

We’ve gotten lots of feedback on the multiple accounts on a single domain, and the discussion to change/improve this is happening on our GitHub page: https://github.com/thunderbird/thunderbird-android/issues/8381

Robert wrote on

Great to have, but it only pulls every 15 minutes instead of immediately like gmail app or outlook on android

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

If you go intro Settings > Folder Settings, there is an option to enable push for each folder.

Norbert Schmitt wrote on

Hallo.
Gibt es auch den Kalender in Thunderbird für Android?

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

There is no Calendar in Thunderbird for Android right now. It may be considered in the future!

a wrote on

I got pushed this update yesterday without my consent. As to my understanding, this was a whoopsie and has been fixed after a few hours(!) of sowing distrust among long time user. Please acknowledge and apologize publicly.

Also there is no option to opt out of telemetry in the app that got pushed on me, while the docs state there should be one.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Was this on F-Droid? If so, there was a metadata error for the K-9 Mail builds, and even though the app said it was the Thunderbird for Android beta, it was still K-9 Mail. We are definitely sorry for any confusion, and you can read more about what happened here: https://forum.f-droid.org/t/k-9-to-thunderbird-update/28973/38

K-9 Mail should not have telemetry at all, and so if you were on K-9 Mail (even if it said it was the TfA Beta) there’s no telemetry to disable.

Hutchdeluxe wrote on

How do we upgrade from K-9 Mail to Thunderbird? They claim to be the same app now, but I just installed Thunderbird and it doesn’t seem to have an option to import my mailbox and settings.

Hutchdeluxe wrote on

Sorry, I found the instructions. The button to import settings from K-9 (not desktop Thunderbird) was further down and off the screen while I was in landscape mode.

Fpp wrote on

I had K9-mail. I have installed TB and imported all from K9, but now I have them both. I am afraid of deleting K9 because I think I might loose things but I am afraid also of having them both running.
What is the correct way for migrating from K9 to TB?

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Hi! We have a guide on importing your settings, including from K-9 Mail! https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/thunderbird-android-import#w_how-to-import-from-k-9-or-other-thunderbird-for-android-apps

Doug wrote on

Wonderful having my favorite email app on Android.
Time to make another donation.
Thanks and appreciation!

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

We’re so happy you can finally have us on mobile too, and thank YOU for donating! It’s support like this that helped make Thunderbird for Android possible at all!

John Thompson wrote on

I just download T-bird/Android and it looks great! Account import from desktop Thunderbird was flawless. I find it a much better email client than gmail, and even better than K9Mail. Looks like it was worth the wait.

Thanks!

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

We’re so glad the wait was worth it, and like we said, it was a real team effort, both MZLA staff and our community, to make it finally happen!

John Thompson wrote on

If you’re worried about losing your emails if/when you delete K9Mail, that shouldn’t happen if you’re using IMAP rather than POP3 to access your mail with K9Mail. With IMAP, your mail resides on the server rather than on your device, so connecting via IMAP will show the same emails regardless of what device or email client you use.

Bridgette Pace wrote on

I have used Thunderbird forever on my Linux desktop and have never had a problem. I am not computer savvy and my needs are simple but I still read blogs to learn what I can. I see the Thunderbird people doing a great job . New products always come with glitches and I see that Thunderbird takes everything on board, addresses the comments and gives honest responses. This is a free service and those few who are ungrateful and make ungracious remarks should rethink their comments and be patient and respectful to the Thunderbird team for the work that they do.

Per Bryldt wrote on

Thanks..

Tom Barkas wrote on

Fantastically good import of accounts from Thunderbird Desktop. Usually the bane of my life. Well done!

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Thank you! MAJOR kudos to our desktop team for making that happen!

Pete wrote on

I have been using Thunderbird on desktop for decades now and also contributed financial to the cause. However, your app continues to not support HTML in signature which makes me think that it won’t be a very long “flight” but more like a crash landing. I need an email client that I can use for both my private and work emails. As I need to use HTML in my work email signature, a mail client that does not support HTML in signatures is fairly useless, especially since other clients like Fairemail have been offering this for years. Even K@ mail, another fork from the K9 project was offering that in 2015 already.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Thank you for supporting us, and for your comments. EVen though we don’t have HTML Signatures now, they could always be added in the future. A good way to support that would be upvoting and commenting on the related suggestion on Mozilla Connect: https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/k-9-mail-html-sign/idi-p/71065

Allen wrote on

I’m using Edison Mail on Android. Google Play says Tbird is installed. But the app doesn’t show up — unless it’s called Mail — in which case I just get Edison. I’d rather not uninstall Edison until I’ve tested Tbird, so I’d like to know how to run Tbird explicitly while Edison is still operational. Any ideas?

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Hey there! This is a little tricky to troubleshoot in a blog comment, and unfortunately we can’t find any existing tips, even on the K-9 Mail forum. We recommend opening a support ticket on Support Mozilla (SUMO): https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/products/thunderbird-android

Flavio wrote on

Great news! Congrats! I will donate. I just have 1 question, something we’ve wanted forever and other apps dont have.

AUTOCONFIG!!! When is that expected? It didn’t work.

Thanks!

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Thanks so much for trying us and for donating! We have a related issue open on our GitHub, and this would probably be the best place to follow our progress on this: https://github.com/thunderbird/thunderbird-android/issues/8158

Bernhard Kaiser wrote on

Just looked up the description on F-Droid.
There seems to be no support for MS Exchange.
That is THE show-stopper.
Sorry to say that.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Thanks for the comment, and we understand that Exchange support is critical for some would be users. There is a suggestion on Mozilla Connect you can upvote and comment on as well: https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/support-exchange-web-services-protocol-in-k-9-mail/idi-p/31613

sander wrote on

why not continues ipdates for mail on Android. The fastest in 15 minutes interval ???

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

You can also enable push notifications, which we explain how to do in this article: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/configure-push-email-thunderbird-android

Steve wrote on

Great news! As an ex-Netscape Mail user I’m so glad to see Thunderbird for my phone, albeit had I known a few days earlier, migrating several mail provider changes that I’d already sorted in Thunderbird would have saved me some time and trial/error 🙂

Now that you have all my devices covered I’m going to subscribe.

Great stuff. Go well!

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Wow, you have been with us since the days of our ancestors! We’re so glad you’re using us on mobile now, though sorry we couldn’t get to you a little sooner.

Yann Bonnin wrote on

Une très bonne nouvelle ! À quand sur iOS ?
J’utilise TB sur Windows et aussi sur Mac Os X depuis le début. Après avoir utilisé Android, j’en suis venu à l’iPhone pour des raisons professionnelles.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Hello! While we don’t have our roadmaps for next year ready quite yet, we are hoping to begin work on the iOS app next year!

qlum wrote on

Seems, my k9 mail updated to the new interface.
So far alright, some starting issues of course such as the account letters thingy which seems to be well known, but besides that, seems alright.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

We have the first improvements coming to the account icons in the next point release, and you’ll be able to customize the two letters to begin with. We’ll keep on improving – we want the mobile Thunderbird to help people get everything done as easily and efficiently as possible!

Leslie Heasman wrote on

Its a pity that I can’t import my thunderbird calendar from my desktop. Its of more use than the email client since I can see all my Gmails on my phone anyway.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Thank you for your comment, and while we don’t have a calendar built into the mobile app, you can upvote a suggestion for this feature at Mozilla Connect! https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/calendar-support-on-thunderbird-mobile/idi-p/76394

OhWeh wrote on

The Beta version was good. But this is the real stuff.Thanks for this! Only a calendar as in the desktop version is missing.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Thank you for your comment and for using us! You can also upvote a suggestion for a calendar feature on Mozilla Connect: https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/calendar-support-on-thunderbird-mobile/idi-p/76394

Duchess wrote on

I’m using a KeyOne Blackberry running Android and have had Fastmail on my phone for years. Am I being thick? Will the new app look very different?

Duchess wrote on

Sorry, I’m looking at fastmail, not Thunderbird, which I use on the desktop. Will now download it! Don’t bother to moderate these, if it’s ok!

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

It’s quite alright! Thank you for trying us and we hope you enjoy having Thunderbird on your mobile device and your desktop!

Heili wrote on

Hello dear Thunderbird team,
when will there finally be an app for IPhone and iPad? I already use Thunderbird on IOS devices. Now only the iPhone and iPad are missing then everything is perfect. Many thanks and best wishes.

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Hello! While we don’t have our roadmaps for next year ready quite yet, we are hoping to begin work on the iOS app next year! (I’m also an Apple user, and I cannot wait to have Thunderbird on my regular phone!)

Juudy Scrimger wrote on

Wundebaaaar! A month ago I installed Thunderbird for Android Beta on my Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra, showing as Version 8.0b5 – is there an update to this final version, please?

Monica Ayhens-Madon wrote on

Thanks so much for using Thunderbird for Android and helping us test the beta! They are two separate apps, so you’ll need to download the stable Thunderbird app. But you can keep the Beta app as well – we’ll have lots of new features for people to test!

Comments are closed.