I'm new to the Android scene.. is there anything other that Kies that can be used to sync contacts/calendar etc?
Just hate how Gmail adds each and everyone you email...
Only if you have it set up that way. Go to your Gmail (in a web browser) and then click on settings (the gear in the upper right). On the General Tab, scroll down until you see the setting for "Create Contacts for auto complete" setting and change it to "I'll add contacts myself"
Lesson to be learned: If you don't like how something is operating, check the settings to see if you can change it.