IPhone Email Disclosure: Spark Vs. Airmail
The iPhone email app game has changed a lot over the years, the only difference being that no app seems to stay at the top of the rankings. At the moment, the two most popular options are Airmail and Spark. Let’s see what makes them different.
Applicants
It is impossible to browse the countless mail apps in the App Store. Worse, it seems that every time an app works well, like Mailbox , Sparrow or Acompli , that app is bought by some corporation and then migrated to another service (or discontinued altogether). At the moment, two of our favorites, Airmail and Spark, seem to be safe. So let’s take a look at them:
- Airmail ($ 4.99): Airmail was first available on the Mac, and it’s our favorite Mac email client . This desktop pedigree also shows up in the iPhone app, as Airmail’s appeal comes from the sheer amount of customization options available. Besides all the usual email features such as supporting multiple accounts using standards such as Gmail, Exchange, IMAP, or POP3, Airmail also has many advanced features. This includes options such as location-based notifications, custom swipes, and more.
- Spark (free): Spark first launched on the iPhone, but was soon followed by a Mac app . The mobile focus is reflected in the design, as Spark is much simpler and more user-friendly than Airmail. Spark is a lot like the spiritual successor to Sparrow , so if you’ve ever enjoyed this app, Spark can be your go-to. As you’d expect, Spark supports Gmail, Exchange, and IMAP email accounts, as well as options for a unified inbox.
While Spark and Airmail are great email apps, they both have different strengths, so let’s determine which app is best for you.
Spark is great for automatic email sorting and smart notifications
Spark’s main argument is its “intelligence”. It has a smart mailbox, smart search and smart notifications. This actually means automation, but no matter what you call it, it works well for anyone who doesn’t want to mess around and sort their email manually.
A smart mailbox is the most important thing Spark does. Spark detects if an email is personal, newsletter, or an email notification type, and then groups those emails into batches. It then uses the same system to send you notifications only for important emails, which are usually classified as personal. Of course, you can always set up notifications for each email, but Spark’s appeal is that you don’t have to. In my experience, this has always been pretty smart. I always get notified of any email that is in response to something I sent, and then I get multiple notifications from specific senders like anyone here at Lifehacker or my parents. It’s not perfect, but I usually don’t miss out on anything too important.
Searching in Spark is also considered more intelligent, which in this case means you can use natural language to search, such as “attachments from Andy last week.” This is useful if you do a lot of searching in your email.
Airmail also has some of these features, but they are not that important. Airmail does not have specific sorting options for incoming messages, but it does support smart folders and many other manual sorting options.
Airmail also has smart notifications, although it doesn’t seem as robust or smart as Spark’s system. Instead, Airmail’s main strength with notifications is its support for VIP addresses, with which you only receive email notifications from specific senders. Search is more manual than natural language, where you can sort your search results using filters to find what you are looking for.
In short, Spark is about automation and Airmail is about manual control. If email is a service you use and not some kind of deep connection to important aspects of your life, Spark’s automatic controls will make your email easier without too many fads. If your email is extremely important, Airmail gives you the manual controls you need to get the information you need, when you need it.
Airmail is the choice for those who love to customize
If you want to set up your email, you need airmail . Airmail has an absurd amount of customization options, from specific swipe actions for your inbox to location-specific notifications.
The number of customization options in Airmail is difficult to describe here, but rest assured, you can customize this app as you see fit. Personally, what I like the most is the small change you can make is the size of the preview of the post. You can change the number of lines displayed for an email on the Inbox screen, making it much easier to sort emails without even opening them. Everything else you would expect here is here, such as labels, filters, and various signatures. There are countless other options as well, including setting up systems to move email between accounts, resizing attachments, automatically sending people to specific streams, and more. You will find help setting up all of these options on the Airmail documentation page , which is worth taking a look at to see everything Airmail can do.
Spark also has many customization options, but not as many as Airmail. You can change the swiping behavior, swap different widgets, change parts of the sidebar, and choose from several different themes. For some people, that’s enough, so if customization isn’t important to you, Spark will do the trick.
Airmail integrates with a wide range of services
A growing trend with productivity apps is app integration to quickly send data from one app to another. In the case of email applications, this usually means linking your email to cloud storage, calendars, or to-do lists. At this point, Airmail blows the Spark out of the water.
Airmail integrates with built-in calendars, reminders and pretty much all Apple cloud storage, as well as many third-party apps like Wunderlist , Fantastical , Trello , Evernote , Editor , GitHub, and more. It also lets you open links in several third-party browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, and Mercury . Beyond that, Airmail even supports a workflow that allows you to create your own custom actions that link Airmail to other applications.
Spark doesn’t come close to Airmail in this regard. It integrates with major cloud storage services along with some big third-party options like OneNote , Evernote, and Pocket .
Airmail is the clear winner here. If you use your email to manage various tasks, create tasks, link to various notes, or whatever, Airmail is the app you want to use.
Verdict: Spark is the best app for most people, but airmail is a power user dream
Spark and Airmail are quite different from each other that it’s pretty easy to decide which is best for you. If you’re mourning the loss of minimal email apps like Mailbox and Sparrow, Spark is the place to go. If you just need a way to check your email, maybe reply to some from time to time, then, again, Spark is the app for you. Since it’s free, it’s easy to test it to make sure it works for you.
Airmail has a $ 5 barrier to entry, but it’s well worth the asking price if you consider yourself a power user. It is highly customizable and should suit anyone who relies on email for their work. If you spend a lot of time in your email app on your phone, Airmail makes this process a lot easier.