Swiss company Proton is further expanding its productivity suite. In addition to an email service, calendar, VPN, password manager, and drive, Proton
Do we like Proton? I never know which VPN company I can truly trust.
Proton launches privacy-first alternative to Excel and Google Sheets
Submitted 2 weeks ago by BrikoX@lemmy.zip to technology@lemmy.zip
Comments
danc4498@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
cabbage@piefed.social 2 weeks ago
They’re increasingly divisive I’d say. For me the fact that they rage-quit mastodon after a stint of bad publicity is all I need to know. If they were truly dedicated to a better internet they would be committed to stand up against big tech everywhere, not just wherever there’s money to be made on it. I’m migrating away from my proton mail account.
I get my VPN from Surfshark. Not because I necessarily trust them, but because it’s cheap and they don’t insist on doing anything else than just being my VPN provider.
DahGangalang@infosec.pub 2 weeks ago
Don’t let me ruin your good time, but my experience with Surf shark:
Used surf shark for about 3 years around pandemic timeframe. Had no complaints (other than it drained my phone battery super fast - didn’t test empirically, but seemed somewhat worse than other VPN providers). I was unemployed for a while, so took the opportunity to cut expenses; tried to drop my surf shark subscription. It was a HUGE pain in the butt. I forget the process, but iirc, you had to use their help chat to get the number for cancellations, they kept me on hold for ~10 min, then had a long winded questionnaire (“were required to ask you these questions before proceeding”) asking why I was quitting, then made an offer for discounted months before letting me unsubscribe.
Its my understanding regulations have changed such that that’s not allowed anymore and also that most VPN can elations are about that bad anyway, but still, wanted to share my experience. Lol, suppose so long as you never quit, you won’t have to deal with all that.
artyom@piefed.social 2 weeks ago
I use Proton because they are no longer a “VPN company”. They are slowly rolling out a suite of privacy tools that compete with Google’s Workspace (or whatever the hell they’re calling it these days).
If you want a “VPN company” I would recommend Mullvad.
scytale@piefed.zip 2 weeks ago
If you don’t need port-forwarding, Mullvad is the best choice IMO. Eggs in a basket as well, if you already use other Proton products but don’t want to lock yourself into one vendor for everything.
LastYearsIrritant@sopuli.xyz 2 weeks ago
If you’re buying an annual plan, Mozilla resells Mullvad for cheaper. Monthly, buying direct is cheaper.
Also, I assume, but don’t have any evidence, that buying from a reseller is a little more private due to separation of billing and services.
Spacehooks@reddthat.com 2 weeks ago
Not even sure anymore. Ceo recently said Trump is great.
illi@piefed.social 2 weeks ago
This is not completely fair or true statement - though it is not too far from truth.
krolden@lemmy.ml 2 weeks ago
Thorry@feddit.org 2 weeks ago
Libre office is a fine tool, I use it myself. Calc is a somewhat capable spreadsheet application, although it has its fair share of issues and quirks. But that’s true for most software these days, although I do wish the windows would be on a random monitor at a random location and random size all the time.
However in this case they state their solution is a Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel competitor. These are tools one uses online in a browser to access files stored on the server of the provider. That’s pretty different from what Libre Office Calc offers. It’s a bit confusing because Microsoft calls their app Excel, which can refer to the online service or the offline local app. But with Google sheets it’s clear it’s the online service they refer to.
So the comparison isn’t a straight one. If a local app is an option, I would prefer that over an online service. So Libre office is the way to go. But many people prefer something that’s available on any device, including underpowered tablets and phones, and want their files to be accessible everywhere. For those people it’s good to have competition to Microsoft and Google.
homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
Proton Mail has long positioned itself as an apolitical company, dedicated solely to safeguarding user privacy. That’s why many were surprised when [Jan 2025] CEO Andy Yen posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the political landscape in the U.S. had shifted, stating, “10 years ago, Republicans were the party of big business and Dems stood for the little guys, but today the tables have completely turned.”
This statement quickly went viral, leading to further controversy when Proton’s official Reddit account reinforced Yen’s sentiment. The now-deleted post suggested that Republicans were more inclined to take on Big Tech monopolies than corporate-aligned Democrats. However, within hours, Proton removed all traces of these remarks from its social media platforms.
Proton? No.
eodur@piefed.social 2 weeks ago
Yeah, that mess was quite disappointing. I’m still waiting for them to make a clarifying statement on it. I suppose removing it and just not getting further involved in politics is at least “better” than continuing to double down.
underisk@lemmy.ml 2 weeks ago
Well, hope you like AI shit too because the people at proton are in love with vibe coding. Get ready for your data to be exfilled by a prompt injection in a spam email.
recklessengagement@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
I’m actually hyped for this. A privacy-first alternative to google cloud. I still prefer to self-host all my stuff, but this is WAY more accessable to my less tech-savvy friends
ChicoSuave@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
Privacy first, yes, but who are Proton and can they be trusted? The amount of times they have responded with an immature or unprofessional reaction is too many to believe they are not going to sell or fuck with the data.
Privacy first for the authoritarian mindset is a walled garden, like Apple. They want to prevent anything from connecting or working with stuff because “security” and meanwhile harvest data about you.
recklessengagement@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
Your criticism may be valid (I’m not familiar with any controversy), but if they are as bad as you say, do you have a better alternative?
I just moved from Google, so thus far it has felt like a significant improvement for me.
cassandrafatigue@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 weeks ago
Cryptpad?
Anybody?
No?
BrikoX@lemmy.zip 2 weeks ago
My go-to online suite, but their spreadsheets, documents, and presentations have some big limitations as they use embedded OnlyOffice.
QuestionMark@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
It’d odd that they don’t have a Linux version of proton drive.
DahGangalang@infosec.pub 2 weeks ago
Not the exact development route I wanted them to take, but def pleased they’re doing something to improve existing services.
Definitely better than the whole (ongoing?) Proton Wallet ordeal.
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today 2 weeks ago
up until they start spying like google, and selling you data, its only a matter of time.
Darkness343@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
Is it called collabora calc?
BrikoX@lemmy.zip 2 weeks ago
Their philosophy is a bit fucked to be able to recommend them. forum.collaboraonline.com/t/…/3619
kilgore_trout@feddit.it 2 weeks ago
How is reimbursement for the money Microsoft itself asks to be published on their Store, a “fucked up philosophy”?
You are blaming the wrong party.
Jhex@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
I’ve been waiting for this!.. I have a couple of personal spreadsheets with Google but that’s it.
Now I can completely move to Proton (not the best but at least better) and spend my day filling and removing my Google Drive with garbage tehehehe
shath@hexbear.net 2 weeks ago
nice
artyom@piefed.social 2 weeks ago
Why are we linking to articles with no sources rather than just the horse’s mouth?
https://proton.me/blog/sheets-proton-drive
ozymandias@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 weeks ago
“the horses mouth” means a direct source…
i think it comes from inspecting a horse’s teeth before buying it, rather than taking someone else’s word for it.
your link is straight from the horse’s mouth, for example.
artyom@piefed.social 2 weeks ago
…yes, I was aware of what it means when I wrote it, thank you.