E-Mail: POP3 or IMAP?

When configuring a mail program such as Microsoft Outlook or Mozilla Mail to access your e-mail, you will usually be required to specify your type of incoming mail server. The two most common options are POP3 and IMAP. Sometimes you have no choice because your e-mail administrator only allows one or the other, but most major mail servers allow you to choose either option. Which one should you pick? Without getting into the really technical details, here is a basic description of each type of server along with its benefits and drawbacks.

POP3

POP3 works by downloading all of your mail from the server to your computer's hard drive.

Benefits

• All of your mail files are saved to your hard drive, so you can read the files you've downloaded even if you are no longer connected to the internet.
• Once a mail message is downloaded, even if it has an attachment, it will load quickly every time you open it because the file is on your own computer.

Drawbacks

• If you do not set up your e-mail program to leave a copy of your messages on the server, you will not be able to read your mail from anywhere except the computer you used to download them.
• Even if you do opt to leave a copy of your messages on the server, you will have to re-download your entire list of messages every time you use a new computer to access your mail. This can be a lengthy process, especially if you have many large messages in your inbox.
• Depending on how you have your various mail programs configured, your read/unread status for messages may not be properly reflected depending on where you are when you read your mail.
• You can only sort messages into folders on your hard drive. If you move a message into a new folder, you will not be able to read it from another computer.

IMAP

IMAP works by letting you connect to a mail server and browse the names of your mail messages before downloading them.

Benefits

• When you connect to the e-mail server, you do not have to download every message before reading it. This is advantageous if you have many large messages in your inbox which you have not already downloaded.
• Your messages will be exactly the same no matter what computer you use to access them. The read/unread status of messages will always be accurate.
• Messages can be sorted into folders on the server. These folders will be accessible from any computer.
• ECN e-mail servers are backed up regularly, so you can recover lost messages in case of an emergency.

Drawbacks

• You must be connected to the internet at all times to read your old messages.
• No matter how many times you read a message, you will have to download it every time you want to read it. For large messages or messages with attachments, this can be time-consuming.

Summary

In general, you should use IMAP to access your e-mail unless you always use the same computer to access your mail or you use a dial-up internet connection that is not permanent.