Mozilla has just unveiled Thunderbird version 136 of its widely adopted free and open-source desktop email client, now available for download. One highlight of the new release is the ability for messages to automatically switch to dark mode with a simple toggle in the header.
Moreover, a dedicated “Appearance” Settings UI lets you globally control various aspects of your messages, such as threading and sorting order, and it has also fine-tuned how it handles idle message databases.
In addition to brand-new features, Thunderbird 136 boasts a bunch of fixes that address longstanding annoyances and rare crashes. Here’s a quick look at just a few of the many important improvements:
- Release Channel Visibility: The Thunderbird Release channel now correctly appears in the “About Thunderbird” window, ensuring users know which channel they are using.
- Crash Prevention: A crash that could sometimes occur during shutdown when sending via MAPI has been resolved, contributing to a more stable experience overall.
- Faster .EML Opening: Users who frequently open .EML files—particularly in profiles with lots of folders—should notice improved speed and responsiveness.
- Unified Folders Enhancements: Unified folders should now update properly without becoming unusable, and messages that were incorrectly threaded will appear in their rightful places.
- Better Gmail Handling: Deleted Gmail messages will now vanish right away (instead of hanging around until a compact/expunge process), making it more intuitive and efficient to stay on top of your inbox.
- Calendar and Notifications: Sort indicators are once again visible in the calendar event list, and IMAP notifications for new mail should appear as intended.
Lastly, numerous user interface quirks have been addressed, like off-screen pop-ups on HiDPI displays. At the same time, newsgroup messages and feed web content also received improvements that made them more stable and reliable.
For more information, see the announcement. Those eager to immediately download the latest Thunderbird version can do so directly from Mozilla’s server.
