MailDeck Review

MailDeck is an extremely convenient email client for the iPad. Both stylish to look at and practical to use, it's the kind of app that will quickly establish its place as a core tool for any regular email user.

Much of this is thanks to its relative simplicity. While it offers a bunch of more complicated things, MailDeck also really doesn't take long to set up. Entering a few basic password and username details invariably gets things going with the option to color-code the account for future reference and convenience. For common setups such as Gmail addresses, MailDeck detects what to do and does the more complicated stuff such as entering server details. Then it's just a matter of waiting for the emails to come through which is mostly dependent on how hefty one's inbox is.

Once set up, a selection of colored tabs dictate what can be browsed. Clearly laid out are the inbox, sent mail, drafts, spam, and one's own personal folders. Both in Landscape and Portrait mode things are clear to see and understand. The app picks up if any account pictures should be linked to an email, with bars to the side listing that along with attachment details. There's also the convenient option of browsing all email accounts via one unified inbox or individually, making separating work and personal a touch simpler.

Elsewhere, it's possible to set up various filters and search options, proving particularly useful for those of us with many different emails to sort through. MailDeck promises to be like a database in terms of search functions and it certainly feels that way. The color-coding of everything really helps make for a more attractive experience, too. More minor yet no less significant features such as pass lock protection and push notification rounds off the package nicely.

The vast majority of features within MailDeck are free to use, with the option of $4.99 per year to remove ads, offer Exchange support, as well as multiple personalized email signatures. That seems quite a good price to me as, while the ads aren't exactly obtrusive, it's a high quality product that deserves the support. For those regularly using their iPad for work, this is a near essential email tool.