The downside is when you try to use IMAP instead of POP3. Things get funky – real fast. This is not a application problem, but is because Google IMAP is very non-traditional in the way it handles labels as folders as well as some other quirks.

I love the Gmail web interface, but at the same time I need a stand alone application. I use the OSX address book and need an application that can tap into that. If I want to use the Gmail web interface my only option is to regularly export my address book and import it in Gmail – something I shouldn’t have to do.

That said, I have tried a few mail apps for OSX and figured I would share my results.

Mail.app

I love Apple’s built-in Mail.app and have been using it since I switched to OSX full time over 2 years ago. It’s fast and sexy. Unfortunately it does not play nice with Gmail’s IMAP workings. If you want to use Mail.app be prepared to do a fair amount of searching to figure out the best tricks to get it working sort of working. Mail.app’s downside is handing Gmail’s labels-instead-of-folders method. From my expereince it can get ugly. At one point in time I had a configuration that worked well enough to use, but things such as my Sent folder often got out of sync just ended up causing a nightmare.

Have Snow Leopard? Good luck. I made the upgrade to Snow Leopard hoping the newest version of Mail.app improved on things. In reality, it actually got worse. A quick search revealed the new Mail.app is even more difficult to get working with Gmail IMAP. After reading this I decided not to waste more time tricking things to work right and started looking for other options.

Mailplane

If you have used Google Chrome – which means you own a PC since there is still no official Mac release (they say by year end!) – you might have played with the ability to create a “stand alone app”.  This is what Mailplane does but with a plethora of extra features. What extra features?

• Drag and drop attachments
• Use multiple Gmail accounts
• Get new mail notifications (Growl)
• Send screenshots
• Enjoy Gmail shortcuts
• Integrate with OmniFocus

If you want a stand-alone app and like the Gmail interface this app is likely for you. I used it heavily for a month (there is a free 30 day demo) and had no problems at all. Ultimately I decided not to use it because, since it is still based on Gmail’s web client, there is no address book integration.

Thunderbird

The last app I tested out, and the one I decided to ultimately stick with (for now) was Mozollia Thunderbird. I’m all for open source and use Firefox, so it seemed logical.

First I tested Thunderbird 2. This is the version you get if you just go to the main website and download. It worked, but wasn’t pretty, seemed very aged, and again – no address book support.

Then I began to Google. What is this? Thunderbird 3 you say? OSX Address Book support? Completely redesigned interface? Works with Gmail? I got excited fast.

Well here I am 2 weeks later happy to report that I am using Thunderbird 3 Beta 4 preview and it’s kicking ass and taking names. Gmail IMAP is working with minimal tweaking. Just download T3 beta 4, setup your account using the Gmail IMAP Thunderbird 2 instructions, and finally tweak a few things to follow the recommended IMAP Thunderbird 2 settings.

Hopefully this might help anyone who has been trying to get a Google IMAP usable in OSX.