Just updated iPad. I’ve been testing the categories in Mail on my iPhone and expected Mail on my iPad to show the same things in each category. But no. The Primary category is totally different in iPad vs iPhone. Do I have to train each device? I thought they would sync. If I have to train each device, what’s the point?? Was really hoping this would work.
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I don’t get it either. Apparently this is one of the the downsides of “on device AI”. They seem to mean it literally. Everything is happening on device (and does not even sync between devices of the same Apple account). If you have 5 devices, you have to train 5 devices.
The thing is that even training will not work in all cases (for me). I receive three automated mails each morning, one mail per domain. In those mails I do get the notification what mails were blocked or refused the previous day (AntiSpamCloud). I have tried to train the iPhone for several weeks now (iOS 18.4 Public Beta) that those mails should be categorized as “Updates”. One of those three mails still always is being presented as “Primary”. If I try to train it, it already is being shown under “Categorize sender” as “Updates”, although actually being displayed as “Primary”.
I switched from the Beta to the stable release yesterday and guess what: this morning the mail again showed up in “Primary”. So, stable apparently means in this case: same bugs as in the beta.
I have noticed that I tend to overlook mails because of categories: sometimes I fail to detect that there are mails waiting in other categories. This in combination with no reliable categorization at times makes me ponder if I should deactivate it altogether. I will leave it on for the time being, but it has not been useful to me in its current incarnation.
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That’s really disappointing to hear. Without cross device sync it’s unusable for me. Strangely, using the remind me / snooze feature does work across devices though.
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I moved back to Mail.App on Mac, iPad and iPhone with the promise of the new categorisation features and broader AI improvements.
I’ve been running the new mail app since the very first betas and for me the implementation is both unreliable in terms if the dumb way it categorises (I’m sure it’s just a from address match, nothing to do with message analysis including sentiment) but also the UX that just doesn’t make sense and gets in the way.
AI enhanced categorisation should help you move through mail faster, instead I found myself having to remember to change categories to see messages. In terms of discoverability, the “all mail” view is hidden and impossible to figure out (hint just tap the category you are currently on), not sure who at Apple came up with this and has ignored feed-back from so many people.
I’ve gone back to Spark, it has it’s own problems, however overall is a delight to use. Most of all the categorisation works, is reliable over devices and is interwoven with your mail list so you can’t forget to check a hidden “folder”.
Apple can and should do better, this should be the stuff they come along to and say “hold my beverage”…then make us all say wow.
(not to mention Spark does a better job at GMail, has integrated share to other apps, has a snooze feature that makes sense rather than apples two sep choose reminder then archive).
I was honestly hoping that Apple nailed this, as most corporates won’t allow third party mail apps via mobile device management policy. So just using the integrated Mail.App would have been wonderful, sadly it is not to be.
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