With the iPad , Apple claim you could “ see and advert your einsteinium - mail like never before . ” While that may be technically reliable — there ’s never been a 9.7 - inch pad run Apple ’s Mail e - post client — if you ’ve ever used Mail on an iPhone or iPod touch , the experience will be quite familiar . I previouslytook a closer look at the iPad ’s Safari compare to Safari on the iPhone and Mac . It ’s fourth dimension to take that same look at the iPad ’s variant of Mail .
What’s new
For the most part , Mail on the iPad is similar to Mail on the iPhone or iPod touch : You get the same overall expression , the same capability ( include the useful Data Detectors functionality ) , and the same buttons ( although those buttons are at the top of the sieve on the iPad ; they ’re on the bottom on the iPhone ) . The biggest changes you ’ll find relate to the iPad ’s gravid concealment : Apple has taken vantage of this extra area to make Mail , already one of the better mobile e - mail clients , even more usable .
The same e - mail message display on an iPhone ( left ) , an iPad in portraiture modal value ( center ) , and an iPad in landscape mode ( right hand )
For example , as you could see in the persona above , the iPad ’s 9.7 - inch screen permit you see more of every content . Viewing the same sampling message , using the same preferences , the iPhone ’s version of Mail was capable to exhibit 10 lines , with approximately 36 characters per line , of the substance soundbox ; Mail on the iPad displayed 34 lines , each with approximately 80 fibre , in portrayal mode ( nearly eight time as much text ) and 25 80 - character line in portraiture modality ( roughly 5.5 times as much ) .
The same e-mail message displayed on an iPhone (left), an iPad in portrait mode (center), and an iPad in landscape mode (right)
This additional real landed estate is especially useful when take in fastening : on the iPad , you do n’t necessitate to zoom to be able-bodied to read the text in a PDF or Word document , or the telephone number on a spreadsheet , which means much less frustrating zooming and panning . And , of grade , composing e - mail messages using the iPad ’s nearly full - size of it keyboard is much easier than using the iPhone ’s tiny - by - comparison translation .
The other reward to the iPad ’s larger screen is that you could access Mail ’s features and interface without as much of the forward- and back - tapping required on the iPhone . For deterrent example , on the iPad , Mail ’s Accounts / Mailbox view is either ( in portrayal fashion ) a pop - over menu that leaves the current subject matter mostly seeable or ( in landscape painting mode ) an always - visible dose on the left-hand side of the covert ; in either orientation , the current content remains visible until you specifically choose a new message . Because of this , accessing accounts and letter box is much less disruptive than it is on the iPhone , where you must exit the subject matter persuasion to browse your letter box or account .
A popover letter box listing in portrait mode
A popover mailbox listing in portrait mode
On the other script , the Accounts / Mailbox view is still a undivided column , which mean that to view a message in an score , you must tap the account name , then tip a mailbox , then tap the message you wish to view ; to view a message in a different mailbox , you must pink the “ back ” arrow — once to see other mailboxes in the same account , twice if you want to switch to a different account statement — and then practice down again . Filing and moving substance is also still a multi - tap affair . Still , being able-bodied to keep a mailbox ’s list of messages ( with previews ) visible is a big , big melioration over the iPhone ’s one - affair - at - a - prison term view , and brings Mobile Mail a tiny step closer to its desktop sibling .
There ’s also a new visual when selecting multiple messages for moving or deleting . As on the iPhone , tapping the Edit button in any message view let you select multiple messages and then knock the Move button to move those messages to a unlike leaflet ( letter box ) or intercept the Delete button to erase those messages . However , on the iPhone ’s smaller screen , the only peek you get at each message is its inline ( 0- to 5 - line ) trailer . On the iPad , Mail actually display each message at full size as you agree it : In landscape painting modality , you see the entire message to the right field ; in portrait mode , the message - list popover blur part of the message , but you’re able to still see enough to decide if it ’s a message you really want to move or delete .
pick out multiple messages in portrait modality ( exit ) and landscape mode ( right )
Selecting multiple messages in portrait mode (left) and landscape mode (right)
eventually , another improvement that apace becomes obvious is that , thanks to the iPad ’s better performance , Mail on the iPad feel observably faster at everything . Messages — especially complex ones — display more cursorily , scrolling is bland , and attachments download and display faster . The termination is a less thwarting experience for those of us who plow through lots of e - postal service on our portable .
What’s still missing
Despite these improvements , Mail on the iPad is still essentially the same program as you get on the iPhone , with many of the same limitations — most of which have been present in Mobile Mail since our wishlistsfor the original iPhone back in 2007 . In other words , do n’t expect to see all the functionality you ’d get with Mac OS X Mail or most other desktop Es - post clients .
Here ’s a quick list of some of the popular background ring armour - client have you wo n’t bump on the iPad :
While this seems like a long list — and we ’d bonk to see these features , most of which are common e - mail service client choice , make their agency to Mail on the iPad ( and iPhone)—it does n’t take away from the fact that iPhone OS Mail continue a upstanding fluid e - ring armour programme . While it has its limitation , specially for exponent users , it gets most of the basics good , and it surpass at the most authoritative job : see and composition messages , displaying attachments , and connecting reliably to near any e - mail waiter . And while the iPad interpretation is , by my ballpark estimate , 85 percent identical to its iPhone counterpart , that 15 - per centum difference — which is mainly a intersection of the iPad ’s increased screen space — makes for major increases in usability and productivity .
[ Dan Frakes is a senior editor in chief at Macworld . ]
