Windows Live Mail Desktop is the application that signals the beginning of a new era for the software giant based in Redmond and is just one of the tools included in the much larger Windows Live suite.

Designed to help Microsoft in its offensive against already popular email clients in the market, Windows Live Mail Desktop perfectly integrates into Windows for the smoothest experience you can get.

Installing Windows Live Mail Desktop can be done extremely easy, as the setup kit will do basically everything for you. User interaction is close to zero, so you shouldn’t worry that you may do something wrong in this step.

Setting up your accounts however might need a bit of computer knowledge, or at least, to know your email settings. Whether you’re using POP3 or IMAP, Windows Live Mail Desktop can still guide you through this whole process, so you’re not alone in this world if you’re a first time user.

The interface is of course nice and user friendly, in the same way Microsoft does with many other software solutions. Managing the emails in your inbox or sending new ones can be done in just a few seconds, and all of these thanks to Microsoft’s clean design.

The layout can be obviously changed depending on the user preferences, so it all comes down to how you like it.

The drawbacks we’ve experienced during our tests mostly concern the way Windows Live Mail Desktop works with new emails. You can’t set up the application to check for new email messages every minute for example, while the notifications you receive every time a new message arrives is barely noticeable.

All things considered, Windows Live Mail Desktop is a nice tool to have on your computer, but you might find some issues that could pretty well push you towards one of its rivals. But it’s freeware, so it doesn’t hurt your pocket if you give it a shot.