Email and Android... some questions...

[aSteve]

Hi, I'm completely new to smartphone technology - but I've a fair bit of exposure to computing. I currently run my own mail-server and access IMAP4 from a netbook via bluetooth to a 3G handset using an OpenVpn VPN. This works for me, but it is hardly discrete or slick. With large screen smartphones emerging, I'm considering getting one - but have very specific email requirements.

If I could use my existing IMAP server behind my existing OpenVPN VPN, I'd be extremely happy... I can make changes if necessary - but I want to avoid transmitting my email unencrypted and I want to avoid storing it on third-party servers... (as things are set up now, I'm not worried if I receive information I need to keep confidential - which wouldn't be the case if I used Gmail, for example.)

Assuming you want to securely access your own email server, preferably over a VPN, how does Android perform out-the-box? Are there third party applications you'd recommend? Are there any good portable keyboard solutions should I need to write a long reply, or do I need to continue to carry my netbook too? (Here, I'm specifically thinking in the context of email... I've seen the other posts about the existence of keyboards...)

 

[IHateMyTreo]

Not sure if this helps answer your question, but the Incredible comes with VPN capability. It can set up four types, out of the box.

 

[aSteve]

Thanks for attempting to answer. It's definitely interesting that VPNs are getting attention (I think they're critical to many smart-phone applications) but I'm really thinking about devices I can buy now. While the heads-up on future tech is interesting, I need to find out what my immediate options are...

 

[IOWA]

You can do all this with android 2.1

 

[aSteve]

I guess the remainder of my question is more subjective... i.e. is the mail client 'fully featured' - which, I guess, is hard to answer.

Is there an emulator of similar with which I could play to convince myself, I wonder?

 

[IHateMyTreo]

^ It's nothing like a desktop email application, such as Outlook. And it falls short of BlackBerry email functionality. This is why many enterprise users can't migrate to Android just yet. Sorry, I don't know of any emulators. I guess the best thing to do is find a friend that uses Android and borrow the phone ;-)