This has to be a pretty backwards argument, to be honest.
You may not have to learn "new shortcuts" (they're pretty standard), but you're perfectly willing to learn an entire text-based configuration scheme?
VIM has its merits for _editing_ code, but that's not what you're doing with e-mails. You're usually just writing them and sending them off. It doesn't matter if you can save a few keystrokes to, say, change a word a few paragraphs back, and you're not producing structured text in any meaningful way.
It's perfectly fine to like the terminal, but you _have_ to admit it is a preference that has nothing to do with "efficiency".
I must respectfully disagree. It's far from just about writing an email; it's about managing hundreds of emails. With Vim keybindings, I can switch between email accounts, folders, and individual emails in Aerc at lightning speed. I can select emails using the same keybindings as I would to select lines of text in Vim. Then, I can use those same keybindings to delete, move, copy, or mark emails. The efficiency? It's many times better once you understand the Vim mindset. Plus, I can use the same keybinding system in other programs too. Take a look at [oil.nvim](https://github.com/stevearc/oil.nvim), NNN, or [yazi](https://github.com/sxyazi/yazi), or mpv or surfingkeys in your browser.
For Yazi, I even created a hardcore Vim configuration that makes it even easier and more efficient for any user familiar with Vim keybindings.
Just one example: look at your email program. Perhaps you have a folder open with 100 emails. Now, imagine that each email is nothing more than a line of text. So, you have a document with 100 lines of text. In Aerc, I can simply jump to the first line (the first email) with `gg`. And with `G`, I can jump to the last email. With `ff`, I filter all emails that have the same sender. With `fs`, all that have the same subject. With `V`, I mark an email, and with `X` or `dd`, I can delete the email. Before that, I can mark all the emails I filtered with `G`. If I don't want to delete them but move them instead, I just press `pf` and enter the first letters of the desired folder where I want to move my emails. I can also set certain folders where I often move emails as shortcuts. For example, `pb` to move emails to the "Brain" folder. Have a look at my simple config: https://github.com/rafo/aerc-vim/blob/main/binds.conf
Once understood, everything becomes incredibly fast.
You may not have to learn "new shortcuts" (they're pretty standard), but you're perfectly willing to learn an entire text-based configuration scheme?
VIM has its merits for _editing_ code, but that's not what you're doing with e-mails. You're usually just writing them and sending them off. It doesn't matter if you can save a few keystrokes to, say, change a word a few paragraphs back, and you're not producing structured text in any meaningful way.
It's perfectly fine to like the terminal, but you _have_ to admit it is a preference that has nothing to do with "efficiency".