push notification is becoming a standard feature for smartphones, is google working on it ? apple's done it - not quiet there yet but close...
push notification is becoming a standard feature for smartphones, is google working on it ? apple's done it - not quiet there yet but close...
@justjimjpc - Maybe you can clarify for me, how exactly do you set up your phone to do "push" email? I have my Magic set up with my Gmail account, and I also have multiple POP accounts set up in the default email program. I have them set up to check for email on a regular basis (when running in the BG) and if there is email, to get it.
But from my understanding that is not _techinally_ push email, but pull email. The email app is checking the email server, and if there is an email there, it downloads it. That's no different from using an email app on your PC.
Wouldn't true push email mean that when someone sends an email to you, the email servers automatically send it out to your phone _without_ your phone checking first to see if there is anything there?
How do you set up Gmail to do _that_?
Na, it's not really push. It's poll.
Go to settings->data synchronization and you'll see the last time things were synched. There's a synch now option which wouldn't be needed for push (and even that only vaguely seems to work for me).
I have the Gmail app running, and I have the following settings:
Background Data = ON
Auto-Sync = ON
Gmail Sync = ON
Enable Always-on Mobile = ON
And I'm still not getting new emails "pushed" to my phone.
what gives?
Na, it's not really push. It's poll.
Go to settings->data synchronization and you'll see the last time things were synched. There's a synch now option which wouldn't be needed for push (and even that only vaguely seems to work for me).
Push would be the server saying: is the client connected? Yes = push the mail through the connection; no = send SMS or some other telephony trigger to launch the client app (if it's not already running) and load the item.
Hmm, just had a thought.... sneaky, but you only pay the telcos when a call is connected. So if you build a server that makes a telephone call for a couple of rings when you have new mail, you can put a call state listener hook in for calls from that number, launch your app and sync your mail.
Prolly get the Blackberry patent lawyers breathing heavily down your neck though...
Again, not true for the Google pieces....they are push. The synchronization timestamp is a way for cleanup to occur if there was a loss of data connection. So, it synchronizes to make sure you're up to date.
But you can test the push mechanism easily: Send yourself an email or update a contact from the website. The change or email is instantly on your Android phone with no background sync. necessary!
this is correct.The problem with all these assumptions is that there is a priori no capability for a server on the web to directly contact the phone (at least in certain countries) because there is a NAT in the telecommunication network architecture, so the phone does NOT have a public IP address...
Saying it differently, any phone can access the Internet without any problem, however, it is NOT possible to connect directly to a phone from the Internet, at least, this is WHAT I UNDERSTAND right now...
Hi, I would like to understand if it is really push or if it is polling from the phone. First, let's define how i understand these terms.
- push is possible when the phone is available from the Internet world so the server (on the Internet) contacts the phone and delivers (instantaneously) the e-mail.
- polling is the fact that a phone regularly contacts the server on the Internet in order to asks if there is any new e-mail available.
JoeC, sorry, I'm still a little confused, so I'll ask what I think is a simplified question.
With Datasync on as you've mentioned, if a new email arrives in my Gmail account _online_, does it automatically get sent to my phone, or does it not get sent to my phone until my phone checks to see if there is a "difference"?
The former is real "push", the latter, as far as I am concerned is not push, because I don't find out about the email until the _phone_ checks the server.
As I understand it, Blackberries have true "push" because the email is sent to the phone _without_ the phone checking to see if any email is there.
So, then even when I have Data Sync off, Gmail is still _trying_ to push email to my phone, but failing? (ie, Gmail queries my phone, sees Data sync is OFF and does NOT send the email).
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