Help How does Android handle POP3 mail?

[stevehof]

Does Android's POP mail directly poll a POP server or does it have to go through some sort of Google server and an intermediate mail polling client?

I have my own domain running off a semi-dedicated server. I use Outlook 2003 as my home PC mail client. After I receive email at home, that email is deleted off my domain's mail server by my settings in Outlook. However, up to an hour later I may get that same email on my EVO 4G. I have this account set up as POP mail in my EVO 4G and set to check every 15 minutes...

All of my previous Windows smart phones worked with my current email setup and mail previously read on my PC stayed deleted... What's going on? - Thanks!

 

[jimdroid]

It goes direct to the POP3 server.

That's weird that you get the mail an hour after you think it has been removed from your mail server. There's really no way I can think of for the Android client to get mail from a server if it's not there.

Make sure your mail server is really deleting the mail when you think it is. If you can get in with a web interface, you could check to see what's on the server after Outlook has read and supposedly deleted it.

That still doesn't explain why your Windows SPs worked, but it's a good start to the investigation.

You could also try another mail client, such as K-9, which is free in the Market and, IMO, vastly superior to the stock client.

 

[stevehof]

Thanks for the clarification, tips and suggestions. I suppose my mail server could be having a problem that started up just after I got the EVO...

 

[stevehof]

Just in case anyone is interested....OK, so it's not really a problem after all. My Window's phones would delete email on the device that was not currently on my mail server. So, if I had read an email on my PC, next time the device checked email it would delete that email from the device inbox. Adroid mail doesn't do this and there doesn't seem to be a setting for this.

I was not hearing the email arrive on the EVO then receiving and reading it on the PC. Later on I would hear the EVO beep to remind me that I hadn't read that email ON THAT DEVICE. I guess it beeps at some preset interval until you read the email on the device. The Window's phones only beeped ONCE upon the initial receipt of an email...

 

[jimdroid]

Glad you solved it.

BTW, K-9 mail (free in the Market), does have a setting to sync server deletions (as well as to delete mail on the server when read by K-9).

 

[stevehof]

Glad you solved it.

BTW, K-9 mail (free in the Market), does have a setting to sync server deletions (as well as to delete mail on the server when read by K-9).

Obviously I am still a bit unfamiliar with Adroid's OS...Can I try K-9 with my domain email address without disabling that account in Android mail? - Thanks!

 

[jimdroid]

Steve,
Yes you can. Of course, you are using more battery by doing so, but you can definitely do so.
K-9 has a bit of a learning curve, so feel free to ask questions. It's a great email client once you learn the ins and outs (for example, the preferences are split into three groups: accounts, global and folder).

jd