With the recent growth of smart phone users (Android and iPhone) there’s an immediate question: How do I use email from both my computer and smart phone at the same time?
IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol)
When you add a new email account to your smart phone you get to decide the type of account, you will want to choose IMAP. Make sure that your other computer is also setup for IMAP, and if it’s instead setup as POP then you’ll have to delete that account and then create a new IMAP account.
IMAP will leave your email on the mail server, so that you can have two or more devices simultaneously using the same account. This is perfect for when you have both a smart phone plus another computer to access your email using popular email clients like Outlook (PC) or Entourage (Mac).
Details
Check with your web hosting company to find out how to setup IMAP because it involves setting up your Incoming Server and Outgoing Server with:
- Host Name
- Username
- Password
Most web hosting companies also specify that you use a Security Type of SSL and a specific Port Number for both incoming and outgoing messages. My web host is 1and1.com and they have posted online details.
Summary
Enjoy your new smart phone where you can now send and receive emails, just like from your laptop or desktop computers.
