Mailbird is a mail client for Windows and Mac.  I haven’t used it personally but it’s popular enough to have its own subreddit.

I looked over the web site and the value proposition seems a bit weak.  There’s a chart that compares it to Gmail, Thunderbird, and Outlook, but the “we have green checks, they have red x” rows are pretty marginal.  “Advanced attachment search,” “Nice and clean interface,” “Customizable appearance,” etc. seem like they’re probably more in the eye of the sales team beholder than hard technical differentiators.  And of course, it’s not like those are the only 3 alternatives in the universe.  Most of the sales copy is fluff like “supercharge productivity,” “easy-to-use interface,” “simple setup,” etc.

But some people seem to like it, so party on.  The real problem with Mailbird is not its marginal, if any, advantages over its competition.  It’s that they scammed their most devoted users.

The Lifetime License Switcheroo

Back in 2017ish (and later), they offered lifetime licenses to customers.  That was in the Mailbird 2 days, and there was a very clear statement that the license was not just for that version.  See the screenshot on the right, shared on LowEndTalk by @bobert:

User: Is the Pro Lifetime license for the lifetime of the user, or the lifetime of the current version of the program.

Mailbird: Thanks for reaching out.  The lifetime license is valid for the lifetime of the user.

How much clearer could that be?

Turns out that was a lie.

@bobert explains:

So I bought mailbird lifetime a while ago due to all the people here recommending it to be used along with mxroute.

Today I installed it on a new computer just to find out that my lifetime license is invalid.

Apparently after releasing 3.0, mailbird made all previous lifetime licenses invalid last year. They are now selling another lifetime license for $150 and lifetime upgrade for $69 additional. Needless to say, I don’t think anyone can trust any lifetime offer they have anymore.

Sad.

How Lifetime Offers Are Supposed to Work

When a new product comes out, it doesn’t have much traction or history, and subscribers are understandably reluctant to fork over $100/year or whatever the price is.  They have no way of knowing if the company will be there for the year, or even if it is, if the work and effort the end user will put forth to learn the product, move their workflow to it, etc. will be dumped when the company deadpools.

So companies offer lifetime deals, where they reward early adopters.  It’s a way of saying “if you believe in us and give us some much-needed early cash, we’ll reward you.”

What’s not supposed to happen is that you give the finger to those early adopters.

Companies do play these games.  They’ll say “yes, you have a lifetime license…for version X” or they’ll change the product.  “Your lifetime license is for Gronkulator Pro but now we’ve marked that legacy and have released Gnomovision Pro, which is a completely different product, so no lifetime license for you.”

It’s bad business, because you’re offending the customers who helped you get your start, generating bad blood and bad publicity in your community, and generating skepticism about the next company that needs early adopters.  If you want a world where only well-heeled tech giants can release new products, this is how you help make it.

Are You a Mailbird Lifetime License Holder?

There’s a thread on reddit showing you can complain to the Federal Trade Commission if you’re in the US.  Nice template you can use as well.

• Author
• Recent Posts

raindog308

Dread Lord of LowEnd Content at LowEndBox

I'm raindog308, techno polymath and long-time LowEndTalk community Administrator. My technical interests include all things Unix, perl, python, golang, shell scripting, vintage operating systems such as MVS, and relational database systems such as Oracle, PostgreSQL, and MySQL.

I also enjoy using LEBs! I have an empire of little guys for VPNs, larger guys for apps, and big guys for databases and storage. When I'm not in front a screen I'm into German Shepherd dogs, quality knives, target shooting, theology, tabletop roleplaying games, and forest hiking.

I enjoy writing technical articles here on LowEndBox to help people get more out of their systems. You can find me on LowEndTalk @raindog308

Latest posts by raindog308 (see all)

• The Mailbird Scam: When a “Lifetime” License is Not Lifetime - March 10, 2025
• We Love Cheap Yearly VPS Offers: $10.18/Year from DediRock in New York or Los Angeles! - March 9, 2025
• This Offer from VeloxMedia is Packed Full of Bonuses for Our Readers! Cheap Dedicated Server and Cheap VPS Offers in Seattle and California! - March 8, 2025