Gmail app vs. HTC mail w/HTC sense

[confluence]

One thing that all of us will be confronted with when we get our Incredibles will be: What do I use for my gmail? Gmail app or HTC mail?

I understand that most people will end up using the Gmail app, likely, for the following reason: It sets up automatically. This automatic setup that adds the feature of getting your google mail pushed to the gmail app makes it so you start seeing new gmail pop up when you first power your phone and log into your google account.

A lot of users will see new gmail in their notification bar, open it, and after finding that it opens a gmail app.. they will then think they don't have do anything else to set up their gmail and start using the gmail app. After using the phone more, these users will see that their google mail doesn't show up in their HTC mail widget nor in the HTC sense's unified contacts slider. Then these users will blog about this and blame it on HTC. After all has been written, these users still haven't even tried the HTC mail app, the app that HTC sense was meant to work with.

You don't lose anything from using the HTC mail app over the gmail app. It just takes a little more setting up and, in the end, you get a lot more features.

Here is my list of reasons to go with HTC mail:

1. push gmail can work by setting up gmail as an exchange server (m.google.com)
2. html email views better
3. copy and paste works
4. pinch to zoom works
5. HTC mail will show in unified contacts feature (slider thing in people)
6. HTC mail widget works with HTC mail app
7. HTC mail is sexier
8. HTC mail on the incredible may have more improvements


I am a Droid Eris user and don't get my Incredible for a couple more days (just got FedEx tracking number, woot!), so I can't speak for HTC mail on the Incredible. Maybe they added an easier way to push gmail to the HTC mail app but I don't have a problem setting it up as an exchange account to get it to work, as I can get a much better experience with HTC mail compared to the gmail app.

If you think gmail is tite, reply as to why. At the moment, I am sold on HTC mail.

 

[Mr. Spontaneous]

I believe the Gmail app lets you do gmail specific functions such as Archival, labeling, remote search and more. I don't think I'd want to lose that, especially since it's one of the reasons I'm dumping my BlackBerry for the Incredible.

 

[phositadc]

1. push gmail can work by setting up gmail as an exchange server (set mail to sync "as they arrive")

Can you give settings for this? e.g., servers, ports, security, etc? If HTC Mail could be set up to do true push without killing the battery (gmail push won't kill battery), I would probably be sold.

 

[jcramer83]

Explain a little more about setting gmail up as an exchage server. Do you have your own exchange server that you enter your gmail pop setting to?

 

[answerman]

I'm curious about this too, for a different reason. I own a website hosting company and my mailserver supports IMAP IDLE (true IMAP push) over port 143. If you're reading this, and don't know what IMAP IDLE is, you probably won't be able to answer this for me, as it basically pertains to domain-based email (not Gmail, or Yahoo, or Hotmail, and also not the same as Exchange). When you speak of setting Gmail up as an Exchange server, is that using WebDAV or IMAP IDLE? I have four IMAP accounts that I check at regular intervals on my Touch Pro, which is a battery killer. It would be great if the HTC Mail client on my preordered Incredible can support IDLE. This has been at the top of the WinMo wish list for basically forever.

 

[jamesdean]

Not sure about IDLE but the HTC mail client has the option to select IMAP and specify the port.

 

[crspyjohn]

One thing that all of us will be confronted with when we get our Incredibles will be: What do I use for my gmail? Gmail app or HTC mail?

I understand that most people will end up using the Gmail app, likely, for the following reason: It sets up automatically. This automatic setup that adds the feature of getting your google mail pushed to the gmail app makes it so you start seeing new gmail pop up when you first power your phone and log into your google account.

A lot of users will see new gmail in their notification bar, open it, and after finding that it opens a gmail app.. they will then think they don't have do anything else to set up their gmail and start using the gmail app. After using the phone more, these users will see that their google mail doesn't show up in their HTC mail widget nor in the HTC sense's unified contacts slider. Then these users will blog about this and blame it on HTC. After all has been written, these users still haven't even tried the HTC mail app, the app that HTC sense was meant to work with.

You don't lose anything from using the HTC mail app over the gmail app. It just takes a little more setting up and, in the end, you get a lot more features.

Here is my list of reasons to go with HTC mail:

1. push gmail can work by setting up gmail as an exchange server (set mail to sync "as they arrive")
2. html email views better
3. copy and paste works
4. pinch to zoom works
5. HTC mail will show in unified contacts feature (slider thing in people)
6. HTC mail widget works with HTC mail app
7. HTC mail is sexier
8. HTC mail on the incredible may have more improvements


I am a Droid Eris user and don't get my Incredible for a couple more days (just got FedEx tracking number, woot!), so I can't speak for HTC mail on the Incredible. Maybe they added an easier way to push gmail to the HTC mail app but I don't have a problem setting it up as an exchange account to get it to work, as I can get a much better experience with HTC mail compared to the gmail app.

If you think gmail is tite, reply as to why. At the moment, I am sold on HTC mail.

can you explain how you added your gmail as a exchange server? also how did you turn off notification from the gmail app?

 

[confluence]

Did some reading and I tried it out. You can set up gmail as an exchange activesync account and use m.google.com. After setting it up you would change the download frequency to "As items Arrive". But unfortunately, this is not a true push solution as I noticed it was simply checking the server for new email every few seconds.

 

[gbenj]

Did some reading and I tried it out. You can set up gmail as an exchange activesync account and use m.google.com. After setting it up you would change the download frequency to "As items Arrive". But unfortunately, this is not a true push solution as I noticed it was simply checking the server for new email every few seconds.

Whered u get that info from? not questioning, Just curious.

Thanks

 

[confluence]

Whered u get that info from? not questioning, Just curious.

Thanks

I'm not an expert on push but I'm pretty sure that it means that you do not have to check for email as the server will "push" it to you instead when new mail arrives.

So when I setup gmail as an exchange/active sync server and chose the download frequency to "As items arrive", I had assumed that this meant push but it doesn't.

Shortly after changing this setting, I noticed the "sync" symbol in my notification bar pop up ever 5 seconds. This stopped after changing the setting to something different. With push, my email client should not have to check or "pull" for email as the server will "push" it to your client.

That's how I understand it, anyways. But hope that helps answer your question.

 

[phositadc]

That's too bad. I guess the major advantage of using the Gmail app stands. That being, of course, actual push email.

Disappointing because some of the other advantages of the HTC Mail app sounded pretty good. Not sure they outweigh true push email though.

 

[Feels Good Man]

If you want the BEST email support, get a Blackberry.

 

[jfunk]

This will be my first smartphone. I am currently adding all my phone contacts to my Google contacts because I was under the impression I could sync my contacts from Gmail onto the phone and they would be there fully, as in people in that list will show up when I want to make a phone call, etc.

Is that correct or am I mistaken? Are the "phone address book" and my gmail contacts going to remain two separate things I have to maintain individually?

 

[phobic]

This will be my first smartphone. I am currently adding all my phone contacts to my Google contacts because I was under the impression I could sync my contacts from Gmail onto the phone and they would be there fully, as in people in that list will show up when I want to make a phone call, etc.

Is that correct or am I mistaken? Are the "phone address book" and my gmail contacts going to remain two separate things I have to maintain individually?

If you're adding contacts via Gmail then they'll sync up automatically and you'll be able to do whatever you need once you add that Gmail account to your phone.

 

[phositadc]

If you want the BEST email support, get a Blackberry.

I have a Blackberry currently, and this is certainly true. Unfortunately, they do just about everything else worse. And although it is important to me that the phone handles email decently, I think Android's handling of email probably qualifies as decent. Blackberry's is obviously stellar.

 

[Feels Good Man]

I have a Blackberry currently, and this is certainly true. Unfortunately, they do just about everything else worse. And although it is important to me that the phone handles email decently, I think Android's handling of email probably qualifies as decent. Blackberry's is obviously stellar.

I agree 100%. Blackberry has fallen by the wayside with everything BUT email, it's really too bad. I'm coming from a BB Curve, and the web browser is basically unusable. I chose to take slightly "worse" email in order to have a much better all around phone in the Incredible.

 

[Alfdroid]

One of the main reasons I like Gmail is how easy it is to organize w/ archiving and labeling. How is this handled w/ the HTC Mail client?

Do all my Gmail labels sync to Mail as folders? If I put an e-mail in a folder using Mail, is that same e-mail then labeled and archived in Gmail?

 

[amarryat]

I agree 100%. Blackberry has fallen by the wayside with everything BUT email, it's really too bad. I'm coming from a BB Curve, and the web browser is basically unusable. I chose to take slightly "worse" email in order to have a much better all around phone in the Incredible.

Ditto.

Plus lagginess, battery pulls, "leaks" that fix one problem and introduce 3 others, etc.

 

[appleaj]

So do the Gmail Application and the HTC Mail program both push e-mails? Because I feel like the HTC integrated mail program would be faster.

And also, are battery pulls necessary?

 

[Mr. Spontaneous]

I have a Blackberry currently, and this is certainly true. Unfortunately, they do just about everything else worse. And although it is important to me that the phone handles email decently, I think Android's handling of email probably qualifies as decent. Blackberry's is obviously stellar.

As a BIS user, I beg to differ. Yes you get push, but the quality of the email reading experience is sub-par, in my opinion. I frequently get truncated emails (even with auto-more enabled), and emails with images frequently have wrapping issues.

 

[gobluejd]

I was a DIE-HARD BB FAN BOY. Switched over to Android (DROID to test) and have not looked back. Just had a meeting with the other (3) users that I also switched and they love it. Using TouchDown for Exchange email, and everyone LOVES THE ANDROID OS.

My god some post up above had to remind me of the Battery pulls. I am still on a month with no pull. And not stressing about when the next OS leak is coming, what it will fix and of course what WILL NOT WORK.

Leaving the Blackberry is the best thing I have done, not to mention the money we are saving per month as a company (good-bye BES pricing).

If your coming from a Blackberry, please read my blog, it may help you out!!!

www.blackberry2android.com

 

[dibs ODDJOB]

Back to the OP, does the HTC gmail client do all the things the regular Gmail client can do? Mainly two way sync, but also labeling, stars, etc?

 

[answerman]

Not sure about IDLE but the HTC mail client has the option to select IMAP and specify the port.

I would expect that, but it's not the answer I was looking for.

IMAP IDLE is an additional feature on most commercial IMAP mailservers, and is supported by most desktop mail clients (I use Mozilla Thunderbird and it works flawlessly). The beauty of it is that it has the ability to act as a true "push" solution. The way it works is that instead of scheduling a Send/Receive every X number of minutes, the IMAP client basically pings the server (it's actually a NOOP command in technical terms). It's just saying "I'm here, and this is my IP address". Then, when the mailserver receives new mail, it knows where to "push" it to. In effect, the mailserver is doing 99% of the heavy lifting, instead of the phone.

Why is this important? Instead of going through a whole send/receive cycle, which can take several seconds and send quite a bit of data (even if there's no new mail there) because the mail client must go through every folder it's checking to see if the client and server are synchronized, the NOOP command takes just a fraction of a second and is only a few bytes worth of data. The phone mail client doesn't do a send/receive cycle unless there is actually something to send or receive. When you consider the amount of time and data to do a send/receive cycle say every 15 minutes, compared to the miniscule amount of time and data to do a NOOP, it translates into incredible savings in battery life, since the mailserver is doing most of the work instead of the mail client on the phone.

Like I said earlier, this has been the holy grail that the WinMo develelopers have been looking for forever. Constantly checking email is probably the biggest battery killer on a phone, other than the screen itself, and I was hoping that maybe the HTC Android mail client had solved it. There's a third party app (K-9 Mail) that does IMAP IDLE, but I was hoping for a more integrated solution.

 

[mhrebin]

Back to the OP, does the HTC gmail client do all the things the regular Gmail client can do? Mainly two way sync, but also labeling, stars, etc?

this may not apply but I have an eris with the 2.1 leak and I only use the gmail app. It syncs instantly to my phone and back to the computer if I check it there. Does labeling, stars, archiving all that. and supports multiple accounts. again, not sure if it matters but figured I would offer some info since it is on 2.1.

 

[Ladera]

I have a gmail and a Yahoo Plus account. Currently, I mainly use my Yahoo Plus account and have gmail forwarded to my yahoo account. I was planning to switch this when I get my Incredible and have my Yahoo mail forwarded to gmail so that I can take advantage of the push that the gmail client uses. Is this the best way or is there a way to get Yahoo Plus to push to the phone?