IbisMail take 2

This is my week to take a second look at some iPhone apps that were less than thrilling on their first appearance, but have been updated with fixes and enhancements. Earlier, I took a look at VoiceMail, and today I'm taking a fresh look at IbisMail, [App Store link] an email client for the iPhone and iPod touch that offers some features Apple does not. The app is U.S. $0.99.

Although the specs indicate that almost all mail protocols are supported, last time around I had no luck with a simple POP3 account, and a complete fail at working with MobileMe. I'm happy to say it now works with both types of mail, although setting up MobileMe mail is not automatic, and the defaults the program enters are not correct. You'll have to do it manually, copying the same information you use on the Apple Mail app. I tried a couple of other IMAP mail accounts, and they worked OK.

Users of the latest version are having no luck with Gmail, and some POP3 port selections don't work, while others do.

There are two big features IbisMail offers that Apple doesn't. First is the ability to create folders and rules for mail. Second, it works in landscape mode. Apple has addressed the landscape feature in OS 3.0 that will be out this summer. There is no evidence so far that Apple will add folders with rules in all email protocols.

One of the other downsides of this app, pointed out in my last review, is that it can't run in the background, which is a pretty important feature for a mail program. That's not the fault of the developer, but Apple. OS 3.0 has some workarounds for this issue, but they still don't plan to support true multitasking in 3rd party applications. If the developers stick to the new Apple SDK, you can probably get alerts to new mail when you are running other apps.

So in summary, some bugs are fixed, some still appear to be there. If you really wanted landscape view for email, I'd wait for Apple to update the iPhone in a couple of months. If you really need rules and folders, IbisMail is worth a look, taking into account the app may not work with your particular mail setup.