After working with the Windows Phone a bit, and seeing how I use Windows PCs, Windows Tablets, and Outlook for work, I chose to dump Gmail.
Since the mid 2000’s I’ve used Gmail, its worked good, but for how limited in service that Google is, it surprised me I wasn’t lusting for more features like folder, rules, etc… I have an Office 365 account I already pay for that I use as a cloud based archive, and a collection of roughly 6 other email boxes that dump into there and are routed to their own folders.
But I haven’t used Outlook.com (the free Microsoft Email account associated with your MS ID that many people already have for Skype, MSN Messenger, etc…) until today. I played around with it a bit, and found the calendar to be REAL nice, the email client to be full featured, and overall a pretty solid implementation.
Things better than Gmail:
- I am able to effortlessly map my email domain to the account. No more “sent on behalf of”, but all email coming and going is truly from my domain.
- Rules, real mailbox rules. anyone who gets lots of email will benefit from this!
- The calendar doesn’t look like an app written in the 90’s like Gmail, it looks like a real honest calendar app. Exactly like it does in the full-fat Outlook client you use at work.
- Seamless integration between my phone, and other accounts.
- Able to leverage Google Talk from the Outlook.com client still.
- Uses Exchange ActiveSync to Outlook or other apps, no dealing with other protocols.
- The main thing: You get to avoid the pissing match and inevitable war between MS and Google in the future.
There are probably some other perks, but this is the main bit.
There is a good write up on making the transition here:
Migrating email between the platforms is easy with a took Microsoft co-developed called TrueSwitch: https://secure5.trueswitch.com/hotmail/
The tool is an awesome all server based migration of all your contacts, data, calendar, between the environments. It handles it all behind the scenes on its own.
Warning! – Be Sure to uncheck the box that asks if you want to let people know you are moving… if you don’t, every person you’ve emailed or has emailed you in Gmail will get an email… I did this by accident and have seen a good bit of heat in my new inbox from that. Be a good Netizen and don’t do that 🙂
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