Email app wanted.

[pollensa1946]

The Email app (pop3/imap) supplied with my Moto G running Android 5 has some minor problems, sufficient that I'm looking for a replacement. The problem is that I've tried 3 or 4 of the top-rated apps from Google Play and they all exhibit the same problem. You apparently cannot turn off syncing (downloading emails) from the server, so the emails pop-up on both my phone and PC. I only want to sync my phone when I'm away from home, the supplied app I have at least has that function, easily turned on/off.
Any recommendations?

 

[monsieurms]

Gmail. Go to SETTINGS. Scrool down to "Data Usage"

Option to "Sync gmail"

uncheck the box

There is also a separate setting to make syncs use very little data (which I assume is your concern) by only sync'ing, saying, a day of mail.

 

[pollensa1946]

Thanks, but it's not Gmail I'm asking about. In my post I said pop3/imap. In other words the email supplied by my ISP.

 

[monsieurms]

Thanks, but it's not Gmail I'm asking about. In my post I said pop3/imap. In other words the email supplied by my ISP.

You can do that with gmail. I use gmail for gmail, but also as a central collection point for pop3 and imap accounts. That is, if you set gmail up to get it to collect email by pop3 or imap, then you're back in charge of your sync'ing. You can also send and make it look like it came from your original account of JoeWhomever@Comcast.net

Gmail-click the gear icon on your desktop browser. Then, the tab ACCOUNTS.:

"Check mail from other accounts (using POP3):" and "Send mail as:"
As Google explains it:

"If you have multiple email accounts, you can check them all in Gmail. Gmail’s Mail Fetcher feature first imports all your old messages to Gmail and then continues to bring in new messages sent to your other account. You can add up to 5 accounts, including Gmail and other email providers."

All other issues aside, I like not having to collect mail from a billion different accounts individually. Gmail puts it all in one place while still retaining the individuality of each account. You can even label mail coming from a particular account with gmail labels so you'll always know what it is you're doing at a glance.

 

[pollensa1946]

Ah, OK. I hadn't realised that Gmail could handle pop3/imap. I'll check it out, thanks.

 

[pollensa1946]

I set up some pop3 a/c's in Gmail and it does exactly what I want. Thanks.
However, there is a bug, or is it simply misrepresentation, in Gmail relating to pop3 a/c's. For each pop3 a/c set up there is a Settings page where you can set the Sync period, including Never Sync. You might conclude that this would turn off sync for that a/c. It does not. Instead you have to go into Google Settings/Accounts and turn off sync for the pop3 a/c. Only then does it not sync. This is such a fundamental bug that I'm surprised it has not been identified and fixed before now (Android 5.1).

 

[monsieurms]

I set up some pop3 a/c's in Gmail and it does exactly what I want. Thanks.
However, there is a bug, or is it simply misrepresentation, in Gmail relating to pop3 a/c's. For each pop3 a/c set up there is a Settings page where you can set the Sync period, including Never Sync. You might conclude that this would turn off sync for that a/c. It does not. Instead you have to go into Google Settings/Accounts and turn off sync for the pop3 a/c. Only then does it not sync. This is such a fundamental bug that I'm surprised it has not been identified and fixed before now (Android 5.1).

I think this is backwards in terms of what you originally said you wanted to do, assuming I understood: stop emails from sync'ing to your phone. I've never tried this because--I like to sync. I need my mail. But your concern as I understood was not a question of what syncs TO Gmail, but how GMAIL syncs to your Android device.

The sync commands for individual POP3 accounts only control when mail shows up in all aspects of Gmail, including your desktop browser. That's a completely different issue than when you sync gmail to your Android device. You can--again, I believe--allow gmail to sync normally with your pop3 accounts (and should...so your mail is available promptly when you are home and on your desktop). Then, everything is in Gmail when you want it.

Now, you're now no longer dealing with POP3 issues. You're just dealing with what it is in gmail (everything collected, pop3 or not) and when that goes to your phone. That's a different sync issue. Go to GMAIL on the phone, use the instructions in my first post, above. (#2 in the thread). No matter how the the POP3 account syncs to Gmail, those messages and others in gmail won't download to your phone if you don't allow gmail overall to sync to your phone.

 

[pollensa1946]

Yes I understood your first post and how it works with respect to syncing. My latter concern is that I wanted to sync the gmail a/c's but turn off the pop3 a/c's downloading. The settings page for pop3 suggested I could do that from there. It does not work, you have to turn off syncing of pop3 in the Google Settings/Accounts to prevent d/loading of pop3 if you have the overall Gmail sync set on.

 

[Rukbat]

Turning sync off in the email app sets it to push notification - when the server gets the email, it pushes it to your phone.

Turning sync off in accounts turns it really off.

 

[pollensa1946]

Thanks, now that I understand it it works fine for me. Problem is when I see an option "Never Sync" I assume it means exactly that, in this case it means something else which is not adequately described, or misrepresented as I said in a previous post. I now have all my mail consolidated in a single app, which is a big plus.