Mozilla’s much popular desktop email client, Thunderbird, has been modified into a much better one, Thunderbird 3, with additional features in order to keep up with the Mozilla platform and to provide a better usability and to facilitate the development, dissemination and use of extensions. Thunderbird 3 is compatible with Linux, Windows and Mac OS X, and there are lots of improvements and fixes that have been made to this new email client.

Features of Thunderbird 3 include a powerful new search which looks really pleasing, tab support and a filtering tool that allows you to pinpoint any email, and a completely streamlined email setup tool, which will get your Gmail or any other accounts up and running with the Thunderbird without any delay.
Another being the tabbed email feature allows users to view emails and also folders in tabs within the client, in the same way as you do in Firefox. You don’t have to go for re-saving tabs, as they are remembered in the client. The new archive feature in Thunderbird 3 moves email right from your inbox into a separate archive folder.

Yet another feature, which is a new set up wizard, has also been included. In one spot you can manage multiple email accounts since it has got the ability to combine individual mailboxes.

Considering all the email clients that have been released so far, Thunderbird 3 tops the list. It is the fastest of them all, besides being flexible and secure. The improved search feature is extremely fast, and it filters the messages and quickly narrows down the search by listing the people who have participated in the messaging. The only drawback is it takes a big amount of your time while it indexes your messages for the first time.
By simplifying its configuration and making commonly-used features much more accessible, Thunderbird 3 is off to a good start. Even if you are not planning to use Thunderbird as your main email client, it is an excellent tool for just backing up your email.

image credit : Cnet