AOL's Alto email app will see its last download on November 9

AOL’s Alto email app might have been around for a little over five years, but it arguably didn’t really make a splash until late 2015, when the mobile app hit the scene. Alas, all the praise in the world did not stop the Alto team from announcing that, starting November 9, the app can no longer be downloaded and folks can no longer create new accounts.

It’s a shame, too. When the Alto app first became available, one of its main features was its ability to pull specific details from your emails, such as flight and shipment information. That way, you can see when your flight departs or when your shipment will arrive as cards in your inbox messages. You could also sign into your Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, iCloud, and AOL Mail accounts.

As time passed, the team behind the app only added more features. For example, Alto was updated over its lifespan to include Slack and Amazon Alexa integrations, a built-in calendar, and a list view of all your photo and file attachments.

Yes, this sounds like a long list of features, and that’s because it is. However, another one of Alto’s significant features isn’t a feature at all – it’s the design. The app was designed in a way that made it very accessible to folks, yet powerful enough to remember about the tinkerers who like to play around with their email apps.

Unfortunately for fans, they will not get to tinker with Alto much longer. As previously mentioned, the app can no longer be downloaded from the Google Play Store and no new accounts can be created starting November 9. Starting December 10, the Alto team will discontinue support for the app.

There is some good news, however. In the announcement, the Alto team mentioned it will “be shifting its focus to something new and exciting.” Alto may have been shut down because the team behind it is trying to gel with Oath, but at least there will be something around the corner.

What that something is, we do not yet know, though I’m excited to find out.