Switching from IncrediMail to Outlook: Why and When?
IncrediMail was created as a fun alternative to conventional email clients, strict and businesslike. The program finally allowed users to create expressive and colorful messages, change their background color, use handwritten signatures and do a lot more to make email unique, entertaining and different from their regular counterparts. IncrediMail also made it possible to add icons and photos to contacts in the address book, use various animations and effects, and quickly preview attachments. These are just some of the features of IncrediMail, but the overall idea is clear – it’s a fun-to-use and good-looking email client. However, IncrediMail is not quite suitable for corporate use and it creates a serious problem for users that are currently using it, but have to switch to the king of the corporate email world, Microsoft Outlook. IncrediMail to Outlook conversion is a fairly simple process, which, however, is not possible without proper tools. Unfortunately, you cannot simply copy message files from IncrediMail to Outlook, since these programs store data in completely different formats. IncrediMail to Outlook migration covers messages and attachments and can usually be completed within minutes. However, before you attempt to perform the transfer on your own, you should know the basic principles of IncrediMail to Outlook conversion.
IncrediMail import basics
IncrediMail messages can be transferred to Outlook in several ways. The fastest method of IncrediMail import is to start the program, select the messages you need to move and send them over to an account you have access to (a newly-created account is the easiest option). Once done, download them to Outlook and you are done. This method, however, has a serious flaw – all of these emails will be from you and it will make it harder to search for specific messages. This is the fastest and easiest method, though, which will work just fine for “fast and dirty” IncrediMail Import operations.
There is yet another IncrediMail import recipe, manual and rather inefficient, but still worth knowing. You can drag the IncrediMail emails you need converted onto the desktop or a folder on your hard drive, one by one. Each dropped file will be called “email.eml”, so you’ll need to rename them to prevent overwriting. Once you have a set of *.eml files, you can continue with IncrediMail import by drag-n-dropping them to Outlook Express and then importing them to Outlook. Not the most elegant solution, this method, however, enables you to complete IncrediMail import without any tools.
Nonetheless, proper IncrediMail import should be automated and the best level of automation can be achieved using specialized programs.
Incredimail email migration in a nutshell
The choice of the right tool depends on the version of IncrediMail you use. If you are still on one of the earlier versions of the program (Incredimail 1.x), you can take advantage of the fact that it uses the *.imm format to store IncrediMail email messages. This format is a slightly modified version of the more common *.mbox message format. These messages can be converted into the *.eml format using one of the available MBOX to EML converters (the MBOX to EML Converter from the Outlook Import Wizard bundle will work perfectly well here). Once done, you can drag and drop these IncrediMail email files into Outlook Express and then import your messages to Outlook. Alternatively, you can use specialized EML to PST conversion tools like Outlook Import Wizard to import all of your EML files to a new or current Outlook PST files.
If you are using Incredimail 2.x, the method described above won’t work. The newest versions of the program use a custom type of the IMM format to store Incredimail email messages, which makes standard MBOX to EML converters useless. In this case, you can’t do without a specialized Incredimail email migration tool.
Choosing the right IncrediMail Converter
Since all programs of this type are based on the same principle, the choice of an Incredimail Converter that is right for you will mostly depend on its price and ease of use. If you have been on the look for a decent tool, but still haven’t picked one, we strongly recommend IncrediMail to Outlook Converter. This super-compact and fast IncrediMail converter is your one-stop shop for anything related to moving your emails from IncrediMail to Outlook. The program perfectly handles the newest versions of the IMM format used in Incredimail 2.x, has a no-brainer interface and allows you to get the job done in well under a minute. This IncrediMail converter allows you to perform IncrediMail conversion even if there is no IncrediMail installed on your PC, but you have the necessary message and attachment files residing on your hard drive. If IncrediMail is installed on your computer, the IncrediMail converter automatically detects the location of data folders and allows you to select the IMM files to be used. As an extra option, IncrediMail to Outlook Converter lets you specify where exactly your imported messages should go to – the root folder or a subfolder of your inbox.
IncrediMail migration made really easy
As you see, proper tools turn IncrediMail migration into a task that virtually anyone can handle with ease. Even if you’ve never performed IncrediMail migration and are trying to do it all on your own, it will take just a couple of minutes. Forget about wasting money on “professional” services and waiting for them to come over to help – they may well be using the same software for IncrediMail migration, but will charge you manifold higher than the retail price of IncrediMail to Outlook Converter. Again, all you need to complete a clean, safe and fast IncrediMail migration at home is this little tool and a few minutes of your time!
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