If you regularly find yourself drowning in a sea of emails, there are plenty of developers out there who’ve got your back.
For starters, we’ve previously shared how you can keep your inbox empty in two simple steps with the help of a neat plugin called Boomerang, whilst you can also play your way to Inbox Zero with the Email Game. And a new iOS app has hit our radar which promises to help you stay afloat as you battle your inbox blues.
The aptly titled EmptyInbox for Gmail is a neat app that works across your iOS devices. When you first access the app, you of course need to register your Gmail account.
Once synced, you’ll notice that each email in your inbox is marked as an index card that shows the pertinent information you need to know – who the email is from, the subject matter and the first few lines of the email. Now, how you interact with the app from this point on is what’s really neat.
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Taps and swipes are the name of the game here, as you easily manage where each email is dispatched to. You can archive the email if you know not a priority, star-and-archive it if it needs action, or simply discard it. The next email in your inbox loads instantly and you repeat this until your email stream is cleansed.
EmptyInbox is the handiwork of Berlin-based John and Stephi Goering, a husband-wife team who make apps in their spare time – John is a Java developer by day, whilst Stephi is a full-time mum.
My initial tinkerings with EmptyInbox for Gmail reveal a very well constructed app that’s at least worth you downloading for free. You can make an in-app purchase to upgrade for a not-too-unreasonable $1.99, which removes ads and lets you apply your Gmail labels to an email. It also introduces an undo feature to help you rectify mis-taps. This is actually a key feature, given the speed at which you’ll likely want to hammer through your inbox – there is always at least one email you accidentally delete.
It’s also worth stressing that this app isn’t another email client – it won’t let you read or reply to emails. It merely processes your emails with a view towards helping you stay on top of things.
Inbox Zero is a productivity system that was developed by Merlin Mann of 43 Folders – we’ve previously questioned whether the system actually does help you manage your emails, presenting a number of pros and cons. But whichever way you look at it, EmptyInbox for Gmail is a useful tool for helping you stat at least a little bit on top of the deluge of messages that hit your inbox every hour.
Meanwhile, you can read all our previous Pick of the Day selections here, or check out the 45-second demo video of the Plus version of EmptyInbox for Gmail below.
Image Credit: z287marc | Flickr
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