Ugh, so annoying: "Mail app badge" bug still persists after all these years and iOS's

[sniffies]

I hope I'm not the only one annoyed at this bug:

1. New iCloud mail arrives
2. Badge appears on both Mail apps (iOS and Mac), as expected
3. Mark it as read on Mac, badge clears, as expected
4. Bug: badge doesn't clear on iOS unless you open the app

Yes, I've submitted numerous bug reports to Apple.

If you too are affected by this most annoying bug, please report it to Apple.

 

[C DM]

What kind of an email account is this for? Does it use push or fetch or set to manual?

 

[Mlrollin91]

Not sure how this is a bug. The emails are received via push/fetch. Your inbox is not constantly refreshing the server. In fact, it never does unless you open the app. Therefore, the badge icon would never go away unless it syncs to the server. So, definitely not a bug.

 

[Alrescha]

Or, as they used to say back in the day, "Working as Designed".

A.

 

[sniffies]

Not sure how this is a bug. The emails are received via push/fetch. Your inbox is not constantly refreshing the server. In fact, it never does unless you open the app. Therefore, the badge icon would never go away unless it syncs to the server. So, definitely not a bug.

Did you even bother reading the description of the bug?

Whenever mail is marked as read on Mac, it's automatically marked as read on iOS, and vice-versa. That's the whole point of iCloud, everything stays in sync.

What kind of an email account is this for? Does it use push or fetch or set to manual?

iCloud using Push.

 

[Mlrollin91]

Did you even bother reading the description of the bug?

Whenever mail is marked as read on Mac, it's automatically marked as read on iOS, and vice-versa. That's the whole point of iCloud, everything stays in sync.

Clearly you don't understand how push works. It's pushing the email to the device and that's it. Everything else requires the app to be open. So if you mark it as read on your mac it will show up as read on your iPhone AFTER you open the mail app on your iPhone. That's how it's worked since iOS 1. You MUST open the app to clear the badge.

 

[C DM]

Clearly you don't understand how push works. It's pushing the email to the device and that's it. Everything else requires the app to be open. So if you mark it as read on your mac it will show up as read on your iPhone AFTER you open the mail app on your iPhone. That's how it's worked since iOS 1. You MUST open the app to clear the badge.

It's interesting that it works somewhat differently with other apps. For example, if I receive a Gmail email and both my Gmail app and my Mail app will show that I have a new message, if I read that email in my browser or another client my Gmail app will update fairly quickly (without it being opened or anything) to no longer show a new email badge and its new email notification will be removed from notification center.

 

[Alrescha]

It's pushing the email to the device and that's it.

If memory serves (and it often does not), it is not even doing that. It is just pushing a notification that there is more mail. It is up to the app to handle it from there.

A.

 

[sniffies]

Clearly you don't understand how push works. It's pushing the email to the device and that's it. Everything else requires the app to be open. So if you mark it as read on your mac it will show up as read on your iPhone AFTER you open the mail app on your iPhone. That's how it's worked since iOS 1. You MUST open the app to clear the badge.

Wrong.

Marking mail as read on iOS instantly marks mail as read on Mac just fine. But not the other way around. How do you explain that? Like I said, this bug has persisted for years.

 

[Alrescha]

Marking mail as read on iOS instantly marks mail as read on Mac just fine. But not the other way around. How do you explain that?

Instantly? How can you tell? Because Mail is open on your Mac? Is that not what he has been saying all along?

A.

 

[Mlrollin91]

Wrong.

Marking mail as read on iOS instantly marks mail as read on Mac just fine. But not the other way around. How do you explain that? Like I said, this bug has persisted for years.

I'm telling you it's by design. The mac app doesn't have to be resource sensitive. The iOS app cannot be running in the background 24/7. The amount of battery drain would be insane. This has literally how it's been since iOS 1.0. Apple is not going to allow a bug to be around for 10 years and hundreds of updates if it wasn't by design.
[doublepost=1474408803][/doublepost]

Instantly? How can you tell? Because Mail is open on your Mac? Is that not what he has been saying all along?

A.

This. Exactly. Thank you. If the app is open on either iOS or macOS it will update instantly. If the mac app is not open you have no way of knowing it happened instantly!

 

[sniffies]

I'm telling you it's by design. The mac app doesn't have to be resource sensitive. The iOS app cannot be running in the background 24/7. The amount of battery drain would be insane. This has literally how it's been since iOS 1.0. Apple is not going to allow a bug to be around for 10 years and hundreds of updates if it wasn't by design.

Wait, so Gmail app can run in the background 24/7 but Apple's native Mail app can't?? LOL

It's funny because Gmail clears notifications instantly, in-sync, back and forth, in either direction. Must be magic.

You can't explain that, can you? Right, because it is a bug and always has been.

 

[C DM]

Wait, so Gmail app can run in the background 24/7 but Apple's native Mail app can't?? LOL

It's funny because Gmail clears notifications instantly, in-sync, back and forth, in either direction. Must be magic.

You can't explain that, can you? Right, because it is a bug and always has been.

It's likely more along the lines of different push types of services being used. In one case it's an (Apple) app notification push service that is used, while in the other it's an email push protocol service that is being used.

 

[sniffies]

It's likely more along the lines of different push types of services being used. In one case it's an (Apple) app notification push service that is used, while in the other it's an email push protocol service that is being used.

I highly doubt that. Apple would never use an "inferior" type of Push for their native apps on the native iOS where badges can't even stay in sync.

 

[Mlrollin91]

Wait, so Gmail app can run in the background 24/7 but Apple's native Mail app can't?? LOL

It's funny because Gmail clears notifications instantly, in-sync, back and forth, in either direction. Must be magic.

You can't explain that, can you? Right, because it is a bug and always has been.

Gmail is Fetch. Gmail runs in the background and uses background refresh. iCloud is push and is going to use Apple's server. Apple has more control of what's going on with its own app. And I am thankful for that. Try downloading an IMAP/POP app and set up your iCloud email in there. If the badge icon disappears then you know it's by design. Plain and simple. But it's not a bug. I'm 100% certain of that.

 

[sniffies]

Gmail is Fetch. Gmail runs in the background and uses background refresh. iCloud is push and is going to use Apple's server. Apple has more control of what's going on with its own app. And I am thankful for that. Try downloading an IMAP/POP app and set up your iCloud email in there. If the badge icon disappears then you know it's by design. Plain and simple. But it's not a bug. I'm 100% certain of that.

What are you even talking about?! Where did you get "Gmail uses Fetch"?? Gmail doesn't use Fetch or background refresh. Gmail uses Push.

If it used Fetch or background refresh, it wouldn't receive new mail or synced badges after force-quitting the app and disabling it in the Background App Refresh setting. But guess what, it still does just fine. Therefore your argument is invalid.

By the way, I'm talking about Google's official Gmail app here.

 

[Mlrollin91]

What are you even talking about?! Where did you get "Gmail uses Fetch"?? Gmail doesn't use Fetch or background refresh. Gmail uses Push.

If it used Fetch or background refresh, it wouldn't receive new mail or synced badges after force-quitting the app and disabling it in the Background App Refresh setting. But guess what, it still does just fine. Therefore your argument is invalid.

Gmail most certainly uses fetch. Push isn't even an option for gmail. You can set up the device to automatically fetch. Again been this way for years. Please see attached screenshots. Please don't call my argument valid unless you can backup your claim.

 

[C DM]

I highly doubt that. Apple would never use an "inferior" type of Push for their native apps on the native iOS where badges can't even stay in sync.

The email push is a set standard that Apple uses, but not one that they came up with or anything like that, it's pretty much a universal type of thing. The Apple app push notification service is something that is different that Apple created and controls essentially and works differently as it is for app notifications. Basically the "push" part is similar in the sense that these things work off of a notification from a server sent to them, but the details of the protocol and how it all works, that's where things are different.

 

[sniffies]

Gmail most certainly uses fetch. Push isn't even an option for gmail. You can set up the device to manually fetch. Again been this way for years. Please see attached screenshots. Please don't call my argument valid unless you can backup your claim.

View attachment 655807 View attachment 655808

Like I said, I'm talking about Google's native Gmail app here, not Mail app.

 

[C DM]

Gmail is Fetch. Gmail runs in the background and uses background refresh. iCloud is push and is going to use Apple's server. Apple has more control of what's going on with its own app. And I am thankful for that. Try downloading an IMAP/POP app and set up your iCloud email in there. If the badge icon disappears then you know it's by design. Plain and simple. But it's not a bug. I'm 100% certain of that.

Gmail most certainly uses fetch. Push isn't even an option for gmail. You can set up the device to automatically fetch. Again been this way for years. Please see attached screenshots. Please don't call my argument valid unless you can backup your claim.

View attachment 655807 View attachment 655808

The Gmail app isn't something that uses fetch as it is just an iOS app that uses the same Apple app push notifications as other apps use: APNS (https://developer.apple.com/notifications/) It's not controlled or related to the mail settings in iOS which apply to Apple's iOS Mail app.

 

[Mlrollin91]

Like I said, I'm talking about Google's native Gmail app here, not Mail app.

The Gmail app isn't something that uses fetch as it is just an iOS app that uses the same Apple app push notifications as other apps use: APNS (https://developer.apple.com/notifications/) It's not controlled or related to the mail settings in iOS which apply to Apple's iOS Mail app.

I am fully aware. But Gmail as a whole doesn't use push. Even going through Gmail on a web browsers and going through settings, push is not an option for an account. I've spent hours digging into Gmails native settings. Now if we want to call it "push" in Apple's terms that's fine, but that's not what Goolge themselves classify it as. Regardless it's entirely different than Apple's mail client and still standing my point. This is by design and is not a bug.

What the OP is experiencing is 100% as it should. Mail is not running and therefore cannot instantly mark the email as read.

 

[C DM]

I am fully aware. But Gmail as a whole doesn't use push. Even going through Gmail on a web browsers and going through settings, push is not an option for an account. I've spent hours digging into Gmails native settings. Now if we want to call it "push" in Apple's terms that's fine, but that's not what Goolge themselves classify it as. Regardless it's entirely different than Apple's mail client and still standing my point. This is by design and is not a bug.

Gmail itself uses push, that's how new messages appear in Gmail when you use it in the browser, and how your Gmail app will get new notifications of new messages as they come in.

Seems like what is being compared is more or less what I mentioned before, if I receive a Gmail email and both my Gmail app and my Mail app will show that I have a new message, if I read that email in my browser or another client my Gmail app will update fairly quickly (without it being opened or anything) to no longer show a new email badge and its new email notification will be removed from notification center.

And perhaps the likely explanation behind that, as I also mentioned in another post earlier, is that it's all along the lines of different push types of services being used. In one case it's an Apple app notification push service (APNS) that is used, while in the other it's an established standardized email push protocol service that is being used.

 

[Mlrollin91]

Gmail itself uses push, that's how new messages appear in Gmail when you use it in the browser, and how your Gmail app will get new notifications of new messages as they come in.

Seems like what is being compared is more or less what I mentioned before, if I receive a Gmail email and both my Gmail app and my Mail app will show that I have a new message, if I read that email in my browser or another client my Gmail app will update fairly quickly (without it being opened or anything) to no longer show a new email badge and its new email notification will be removed from notification center.

And perhaps the likely explanation behind that, as I also mentioned in another post earlier, is that it's all along the lines of different push types of services being used. In one case it's an Apple app notification push service (APNS) that is used, while in the other it's an established standardized email push protocol service that is being used.

Okay. I stand corrected, but Google does not classify it as push on a web browser. There is another name for it, I just don't have it in front of me at the moment.

OP. If you think it's a bug find one time in iOS history that it has worked the way you think it should. Then you might be on to something. But after 10 years it's worked the same exact way as it is now. Therefore you cannot call it a bug because it's never once worked the other way.

 

[GreyOS]

It's not a bug, unfortunately it's a deficiency in the protocol apple use for icloud.

it's absolutely correct that if you read in ios it will sync the read status to mac, but it will not do it the other way around.

read about it here

https://support.apple.com/en-ca/HT203545

 

[Mlrollin91]

It's not a bug, unfortunately it's a deficiency in the protocol apple use for icloud.

it's absolutely correct that if you read in ios it will sync the read status to mac, but it will not do it the other way around.

read about it here

https://support.apple.com/en-ca/HT203545

Thank you!!! They even have a support article on it. This will put this to bed..hopefully.