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New iPhone email woes!

C

ct04

macrumors member
Original poster
Feb 28, 2008
38
0
Hi folks,

I have a bunch of questions that you veterans can answer easily.

I use my iphone for work, just got it yesterday and set it all up. I have push email through an exchange server which works nicely. However, if I want to set up gmail (push or otherwise) through the Mail app, I run into an annoying problem - it notifies me just like work mail, and it shows up in the badge on the mail app. I have an overstuffed gmail inbox full of coupons and sales and crap, while I keep my work email spotless - the combination of the 2 makes me think I always have work email.

Is there a workaround to get the badge to tie only to my exchange account? Right now i'm just using the google app, but the disadvantage is it's webmail and i don't have access while flying for example - suboptimal but not killer of course, it's just my personal crap.

Secondly, new mail alerts: is there a way I can have everything except phone calls and sms alerts off when the phone is silent, and come back on when the hardware switch is thrown back to on? I work for a company with offices from Tokyo to LA - it's bloody annoying to have my phone buzzing with the company newsletter from Germany at 3 AM every morning even if it's on silent. At the same time, without my blackberry notifier light, if it doesn't ever buzz I'll never know if i have mail.

At the worst, I'd take everything off when silent, everything on when not...

Obviously, can't jailbreak or IT will have a screaming fit, and they all switched to iphones long before the rest of us so no talking around them.

Your help is truly appreciated!
 
For your badges issue, you could try setting GMail to only send/receive emails when you ask it to. Just set it to 'Manual' in the Email options bit. However, whenever you open the Mail app it will always sync, so then the badge count will go up again. I don't think there is a way to separate/turn off those icons. One thing you could consider, is that with GMail, it only shows the unread messages count for your inbox, not your other folders. You could do a workaround by setting up some sort of rule to put all your emails into a subfolder(? not sure if this is easy or possible, however. Sorry!)

Also, for the Silent issue, I also don't think you can have multiple 'silent' modes. It's either Silent or it's not. You can, however, adjust the overall settings from the Sound tab, i.e. email sounds off, but you would have to go back into settings to change it.
 
You comments are why I just went back to my 9780 Blackberry from the iPhone 4. Notifications and being able to divide you email accounts are severely lacking on the iPhone.

It really makes you appreciate what Blackberry PROFILES can do for you! You will see these people make all kinds of excuses and try to explain "work arounds" but no one does email better than RIM.

Don't sell your Blackberry!
 
Stealthipad said:
You comments are why I just went back to my 9780 Blackberry from the iPhone 4. Notifications and being able to divide you email accounts are severely lacking on the iPhone.

It really makes you appreciate what Blackberry PROFILES can do for you! You will see these people make all kinds of excuses and try to explain "work arounds" but no one does email better than RIM.

Don't sell your Blackberry!
Click to expand...

You bastard! Now you've put that thought in my head ;)

Yes, I am immediately missing my good ol' blackberry, that little blinking red light and all.

At the same time, i travel a ton, and the added functions of the iphone are a HUGE timesaving - our travel agent has an app, i can check in online rather than banging my head on the blackberry browser, directions are easy, etc.

If you vets have a solution for me, thanks - the gmail subfolder one is a little impractical sadly - but if not, fear not - the iphone's here to stay.
 
In regards to getting the company newsletter at 3:00 am. One thing I do at times is turn off the email at night. This way I can still receive a text message or a phone call overnight. Then in the morning I turn the email back on and my emails from overnight come through.

As for the badge issue I'm not sure of a way around it. I have an exchange account and a yahoo account on my phone and I just deal with having the notification for both. No big deal for me.
 
Ever since I started using email on my phone, I have kept even my personal email clean. That means deleting marketing emails after I'm done or otherwise removing them. 0 unread across the board at all times.
 
ineedamac - that is a perfect solution for me; i'm an email addict and this'll help break the habit. how can I turn email off? is there a quick way?
 
I can't solve the badge issue. You may just have to get in the habit of keeping your g-mail in box clearner if that bothers you.

BUT I can help with the notifications.

First, follow the directions for setting up G-Mail as IMAP e-mail, not as Exchange. (Check g-mail on the web first to make sure you have 'IMAP' enabled in the settings. Google will tell you how to do all of this.)

Then, instead of pushing it, set it to 'manual fetch.' (In SETTINGS > MAIL > FETCH NEW DATA > ADVANCED > G-MAIL > MANUAL

Now go download the free app named 'Boxcar.' Set it up and follow their directions to forward a copy of all G-Mail to Boxcar. Let Boxcar send you push notices and play mail sounds. When you see one then you'll know to check your mail, which will then load the messages. (You never have to open Boxcar once you set it up.)

The advantage here is that you can assign a different sound to the Boxcar notices than the normal mail sound AND you can set 'Quiet' hours where Boxcar won't notify you. So, for example, I can get e-mail from 9 PM to 6 AM, but my phone doesn't make a sound or show me a message during those times. Since your g-mail is set on 'manual' it hopefully won't be playing the normal mail sound over night when you get G-mail.

Doing that to G-Mail will clear up a few of your problems.

(If your company allows it, you may even be able to forward copies of your work e-mail to Boxcar as a second boxcar account...this would give you even MORE control as you could set different sounds and time rules for the notices you get from each account. That may not be possible, though, depending on your company's e-mail rules...I'm just mentioning it in case it is allowed. Even using Boxcar with just G-Mail should help a lot, though.)
 
Last edited:
I too don't like the way apple designed the mail app, where's my junk filter?
I see so much crap email I just get so frustrated. It really is a dumb design.
 
Welcome to the iPhone!! :p

Dhelsdon said:
I too don't like the way apple designed the mail app, where's my junk filter?
I see so much crap email I just get so frustrated. It really is a dumb design.
Click to expand...

Junk filters should be server-side. Client-side junk filters are almost worthless.
 
Rajani Isa said:
Have you tried out what Gmail via the Browser looks like?

That might work for you, while leaving the mail.app just for your work email.
Click to expand...

.
ct04 said:
<snip>
Right now i'm just using the google app, but the disadvantage is it's webmail and i don't have access while flying for example - suboptimal but not killer of course, it's just my personal crap.
<snip>
Click to expand...
 
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