[dbpaddler]

Even webOS and Android deal with IMAP folders. webOS is quite elegant about it. Android offers it via third party whether it's the K9 email app or through HTC Sense. So even these newer smartphone OS's that lack in a few PIM areas recognize the usefulness of it. Was one of the reasons why we didn't consider Blackberry for our sales reps. That and the lack of threaded SMS. BBM wasn't a consideration because it only works for BB Users. I look at it as arrogance and ignorance to deny features and keep features only for proprietary programs (like for BBM and not for universal SMS). Rather iphone-esq BB. Way to go.

[TMacDonagh]

Other than using a third party app or BES there doesn't seem to be anyway of supporting IMAP folders. Also those saying "oh you just need BES" is a bit mis leading as well. BES not only is expensive, but BES connectivity may also cost extra on the service provider end too. Also those talking about push and IMAP are also misleading. The phone checks the IMAP like any other phone would, it is just the BES part that really seems to get the push.

When I moved from a Windows Mobile phone to the storm2 I was pretty disappointed too about the lack of IMAP folders. I do love the storm 2, but the lack of IMAP folder support is a pain in the rear far too often. And my personal email becomes an un-organized mess, and if I sort items into the proper folders, I don't have it on my phone any more and that has bitten my behind more than once.

So in short, my work has a BES server which works generally well with exchange and I have my folders. But for my personal email coming from my own email server and connecting on IMAP the BB sucks due to the lack of folder support. I get by, but not happy that such a basic feature is not there.

[tomvb2000]

I agree almost 100%. The only thing I'd add is that the GMail add-in provides at least some folder support but only one-way from the BB to Gmail (Outlook will get the changes from Gmail). There are other (IMHO) serious limitations as well which makes the solution at best "passable" given there aren't any other non-BES options.

I understand many others might see this as "no big deal" and I respect that. I know many people that manage nearly all their email in one folder (basically the BB way) in other email apps/platforms. Great if it works for them but it doesn't work for me. Seems lame not to have a better capability in 2010 and will definitely be high on the priority list when I'm phone shopping for a new phone later this year.

[dbpaddler]

very lame for the "best" email centric device. It's the reason why in my company only two of twenty or so have blackberries. The rest of us are on webOS and Android. I tried to like the BB, but as others have mentioned, the personal email becomes a mess, and I don't have time to manage it all from the computer. And imap idle does wonders for push on both devices. If HTC takes a hold of Palm it could get interesting fast.

[tomvb2000]

As long as you mention it, I'm anxious to check out the HTC EVO when it drops on Sprint late this summer. Haven't played with email on Android/SenseUI, but expect it's better in some ways. 'Course, it might also be trading "BB email dogma" with "Google email dogma". We'll see.

[dbpaddler]

It's funny. I had the Hero since it came out and then got a Moment as well. Given a choice, I take a hard keyboard every time. So while I liked the polish Sense added, I had an opportunity to trade it for a Pixi to give webOS another roll. Still have the Moment, and it's running 2.1 really well. Night and day from stock 1.5 on it. webOS is pretty slick too that needs a hardware boost. I have another line ready for an upgrade so the Evo is definitely getting purchased, and I'll have to figure out what to do with the Moment. Syncing w/Google and Exchange makes switching phones a breeze, and wifi keeps the non-active ones current and useful (except the Pixi) so it'll be fun to keep up with all three. The Evo has a lot of people from other forums flooding Android ones. Even if the Evo isn't a daily user, I can cancel my wireless card and just use it instead and still have it as a phone option.

[tomvb2000]

I thought WebOS and the Pre were definitely breakthrough in many ways - just 2 years too late. I'm afraid they are destined to be an island at some point unless HTC gets involved.

I loved the touchscreen/qwerty combo on my Treos so going full touch is definitely going to be a change for me. Android and that big beautiful Evo screen is going to be very motivating to make the transition.

[dbpaddler]

I don't think they're too late, just poorly marketed with subpar hardware. More solid hardware would've been a big plus along with a better Pixi from the get go. But the bad marketing just killed them.

the Evo should be a bit of a game changer. Big screen, wimax, hdmi out, and HTC's Sense running Android. Now if they buy Palm and incorporate some of webOS into Sense...

[l.a.rossmann]

Do keep in mind BES is NOT a real solution.

I have 8 email accounts on my blackberry. BES can only be used for one of them. The other accounts will not have folders.

[belfastdispatcher]

Agree completely and would add the partial download of email (the More/More All function) gets annoying. In BBs 10 years ago, it was an effective way to minimize wireless data size and power consumption. The rest of the wireless world has changed and simply is no longer a significant savings.

I've noticed at work how different people use email. Some, like myself, use the Inbox as a "to do" list and try to keep it small. Others never file anything into folders, just let the Inbox grow, and search for what they need (if they look at old mail at all). IMAP is important to the first group and not important to the second.

Plus, if all you've ever known is the BB Way, someone might not appreciate the advantages of IMAP - same is true for threaded SMS. BIS 3.0 is supposed to improve things but it seems to be a year or more for RIM to go from rumors to availability so they will continue to be behind competition in some areas.

The more/more all saves people a lot of money while roaming/travelling so I can't see why you complain about it. Why get the entire email if you're only gonna delet it as soon as you open it?(Newsletters come to mind)
As for the imap issues, don't you think you should have done your homework before buying into blackberry platform?
Blackberry is best for email, unless you want to have every email ever received on your device at any time no matter how old.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[l.a.rossmann]

As for the imap issues, don't you think you should have done your homework before buying into blackberry platform?

Worst excuse ever.

If one does their homework all they will read from every forum to blog to review site "BLACKBERRY IS THE BEST FOR EMAIL"

To say the phone is the best for email when it can't handle the most basic function of IMAP subfolders across 2 accounts is like saying this truck is THE BEST 4X4 EVER!! when it can't even drive through snow!

People assume due to the fact that so many people say it is the best truck ever, that it can drive through mildly imperfect road conditions.

Blackberries are mediocre for email, at best.

[anon(98566)]

"Blackberry is best for email, "

Do you mean:
Among all of Blackberry's features, email is the best.
Or
Among the options for email devices, Blackberry is the best of them all?

Because honestly, I could not agree with either interpretation of your statement. There are better device options for supporting email and there are other features of the BB platform that are far more user friendly then their limited support for basic email.

I'd ask that you clarify your statement and explain what is so great about it. What makes "Blackberry best for email"???

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[belfastdispatcher]

If you need imap folder support the first thing you search for as part of the homework is just that "blackberry imap folders", simple.

Blackberry has been and still is the best at push email, not email in general. If you need your emails in real time there's no alternative out there yet for 10 accounts at the same time too, and it works just as quick on gprs or edge or 3G.

You can't just buy something on an assumption and then complain about it.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[anon(98566)]

If you need imap folder support the first thing you search for as part of the homework is just that "blackberry imap folders", simple.

I think the problem is that consumers assume that it will just have it. Obviously making assumptions isn't a good idea, but in this case, it's 100% totally understandable.

When all the other smartphone companies & OS's (Apple, WinMo, Android, Symbion) and even some dumb phones, support such a simple standard, I think people assume that a company like RIM, that touts themselves for having a great e-mail system, would support the same.

"Best at e-mail" seems that it would cover all of the basic features people expect. When one of those simple, basic, features is left our, by a company like RIM, people get disappointed. And rightfully so. When I learned this, I was pretty bugged myself. Not the point of dropping RIM, but it's enough of an issue that when I qualify for an upgrade, I may look at something else. It's the feature itself and the principal of expecting simple things out of RIM.

[l.a.rossmann]

If you need imap folder support the first thing you search for as part of the homework is just that "blackberry imap folders", simple.

Next time I go to buy a truck I'll google "ford explorer offroad performance" to make sure it can go up hills.

Total bullcrap.

Nokia has a system in place, as well as K9, that utilize IMAP idle for mail delivery at the same speed as BIS.

Blackberry has been and still is the best at push email, not email in general. If you need your emails in real time there's no alternative out there yet for 10 accounts at the same time too, and it works just as quick on gprs or edge or 3G.

The way it truncates emails, there is no reason for it to not be as fast on even the slowest medium of modern wireless communications technology.

[belfastdispatcher]

Next time I go to buy a truck I'll google "ford explorer offroad performance" to make sure it can go up hills.

Total bullcrap.

Nokia has a system in place, as well as K9, that utilize IMAP idle for mail delivery at the same speed as BIS.



The way it truncates emails, there is no reason for it to not be as fast on even the slowest medium of modern wireless communications technology.

Is somebody twisting your arm to use blackberry? You learn the facts, learn the good bits and the limitations and you make your choices.
This is a classic "let's blame somebody else for our mistakes" situation.

Blackberry email suits me to the ground, I get my emails fast then I can organise them in folders later in outlook. Getting the email and replying to it within 1-2 minutes impresses clients not getting the email to the right folder.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[l.a.rossmann]

Is somebody twisting your arm to use blackberry? You learn the facts, learn the good bits and the limitations and you make your choices.
This is a classic "let's blame somebody else for our mistakes" situation.

Blackberry email suits me to the ground, I get my emails fast then I can organise them in folders later in outlook. Getting the email and replying to it within 1-2 minutes impresses clients not getting the email to the right folder.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

And you're a classic "let's blame the user, not the device for its flaws." There isn't a company to date that has been successful for that philosophy.

Getting emails immediately is not unique to the Blackberry platform anymore.

Would it hurt to have these features?

[belfastdispatcher]

And you're a classic "let's blame the user, not the device for its flaws." There isn't a company to date that has been successful for that philosophy.

Getting emails immediately is not unique to the Blackberry platform anymore.

Would it hurt to have these features?

Would you buy your big truck without finding out if it's 4 wheel drive or 2 wheel drive first?
It would be nice to have folders but that's not what blackberry is all about in my opinion.
And who else exactly can provide you with instant push email for up to 10 accounts out of the box, no exchange or anything else needed? You can set a nokia to pull every 5 minutes but can you imagine your phone bill after a week in another country? When you look at the big picture blackberry is the best for email but is it perfect? No.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[HD123]

Wow, I thought that this thing could handle freking IMAP folders, I am so dissapointed! I wish there was a free option for imap folders. Anyways, if anyone finds a free imap service, let us know!

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

Nokia, iphone and others

[buddhasystem]

It would be nice to have folders but that's not what blackberry is all about in my opinion.

What BB is about and what it is not about depends on the user. A lot of people including yours truly used other devices where folders are there and are a natural extension of what people work with at the desktop. So yes, there was an expectation that a shiny new little box will do at least as well. It didn't. Going back to your truck analogy, you buy a truck and then find out there is no glove compartment and the seats are not adjustable. These features are so trivial and common that it didn't occur to you to check.

And who else exactly can provide you with instant push email for up to 10 accounts out of the box, no exchange or anything else needed?

This is actually more of an exotic usage scenario that few people need.

You can set a nokia to pull every 5 minutes but can you imagine your phone bill after a week in another country?

If you get ANY e-mail (and I get a lot), this point is entirely moot.

[belfastdispatcher]

Like it or not, blackberry email is good enough for millions of people around the world and always will be. Majority of users are still on the 8300 series or older. Suits me 100%.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[HyperionHK]

I've had my BB almost a year now, and email has been great on it, because I was on a BES. More and more people in my company are moving to iPhones and other options lately. They like to tease me for being one of the few with a BB. I would have bought a iPhone, but little did I know that when I bought this Tour last summer, my carrier would introduce iPhones 3 months later Had I known I would have waited.

Anyway, my company is now moving away from our old Lotus Domino server to a gmail based email system so we can use Outlook. This means I lose the BES server functionality for my work emails, and I'm stuck with a device that sucks for browsing the internet AND sucks for emails I've now set my work email up as IMAP and if I mark emails read in Outlook, they don't get updated on my phone, ever. If I move them into another folder they disappear, but that's not really useful since apparently it's impossible to get IMAP Folder access. I can get these features with the gmail app, but then the GMail app lacks push support and it just checks for new mail every 20min.

ugh! Why is the BB so awesome with a BES, but then so awful without it. It looks like I'm just going to invest the money in an iPhone 4 when it comes out at this point

[MrObvious]

I can get e-mails just as fast on my old WM phone if I set it up that way. I tried it on Android using K-9 before and it worked just as well. So BIS isn't as great as it's cracked up to be. But I got my device because signal is good on it and battery life is amazing (I sent/received IDK how many texts and BBMs (at least a hundred received is my usual) and still had 60%, used Slacker for an hour and had 40%). Why BIS isn't as feature rich I don't know.

[Aacidus]

Jeez, lack of all imap folders is sad. I come from a BES environment and moved to BIS, so so sad.
I had to make a workaround at least for Sent items, since i noticed they don't update on the server end (not sure if thats just my e-mail provider or for all imap services on the BB).

On the BIS website I had to enable BCC, so anything sent from my e-mail would go to... MY e-mail.
Then I created a filter to not push e-mail from myself to the device. This is so I obviously dont get a copy in the Inbox on the BB.

The final step was on my e-mail client (or website), I set a rule, I set it to move all e-mail received from myself to the Sent folder.
So now I have copies of sent mail from the device, on the server side... yay me. Boo RIM.

[lame]

If you need imap folder support the first thing you search for as part of the homework is just that "blackberry imap folders", simple.

right. ok, so i before i go buy a bb, i guess i need to also google "blackberry imap does it send a subject line"... or "blackberry imap send files containing the word 'lame'"

that's ridiculous. seriously.

imap *IS* folders, among many other things, but gimme a break, you find that acceptable? maybe you don't use folders, but that's not a reason to defend bb for not implementing one of the most fundamental aspects of imap.

You can't just buy something on an assumption and then complain about it.

like that it says it supports IMAP when in fact it doesn't. grrr the strength i need to keep from writing what ** ** you all are.