back to article OUCH: Google preps ad goo injection for Android mobile Gmail app

The world's biggest advertising company is preparing to push adverts into its Android mobile Gmail client, no doubt to the surprise and alarm of fandroids who thought their private data was recompense enough. The news comes from Android Police, which has been busily dismantling the latest version of the Gmail app for Android ( …

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  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    g-less

    I am. And contactless to googlers.

    ...

    now, I wonder why I'm getting fewer and fewer emails....

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    What!

    Google is an advertising company and NOT an angelic company out to free us from the Big Evil Corporation's (TM) strangle hold on software!

    This is an OUTRAGE, how DARE they not give us free stuff without expecting anything in return!

  3. Turtle

    Want. Do Not Want.

    "Google will also want to turn off the ads for those who've stumped up the cash for Business Gmail accounts, just as it does for the website."

    Well I don't know that Google will actually want to turn of the ads for paying customers, but they might have to.

    PS: Android is not really "open".

    1. Paul Shirley

      Re: Want. Do Not Want.

      >>"PS: Android is not really "open""

      ...try to remember: gmail (along with all the other Google services) is just an app that runs on Android. An app I have to manually, explicitly reinstall every time I upgrade my Android devices.

      You can have as much or little Google with your Android as you want. Turns out most users choose to add Google even if it means hacking their non certified devices.

      What's not open is the bloody driver layer, with manufacturers playing hide&seek with the kernel drivers and rarely offering source. If only Google actually controlled Android enough to order them to ship source...

      1. Turtle

        @ Paul Shirley

        Without the Google apps, it can not be called "Android" at all. And Google will enforce that prohibition.

        And those required-in-order-to-be-called-Android apps can't be called "open" in any way, no matter now the term is stretched.

        I am also pretty sure that Google has a policy of giving new builds to selected manufacturers first, and only very much later to make it available generally

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: @ Paul Shirley

          Umm Paul. You are full of crap. Android is the OS. Period. Google Apps are what sits on the Open Source OS. You want just android and nothing more? http://source.android.com/source/ Knock yourself out.

        2. Law

          Re: @ Paul Shirley

          Actually Turtle, you don't have to take the apps to be Android Compatible - you just need to pass a compatibility test - it's just most users (like yourself apparently) would expect an Android compatible device to have the google apps on there.

          So you can be Android (compatible) without the apps installed, but you can't take the apps without being Android Compatible.

          http://source.android.com/faqs.html#is-compatibility-mandatory

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Want. Do Not Want.

        "You can have as much or little Google with your Android as you want"

        That's not my experience I'm afraid. I was told I didn't have to use a Google account with any aspect of Android except the specific things I wanted; however, when trying out CyanogenMod, I logged into the Google Play store to get an app, and all of a sudden Android had fired up a whole load of Google services on the device using my Google account without asking, and it was remarkably difficult to find them all and switch them off. I don't think I ever felt confident that I had turned all these things back off, and eventually I gave up and decided I wasn't comfortable with a corporation having such an invasive presence on my hardware.

        At least on iOS, it's quite possible to use the App Store without Apple/iCloud secretly invading your device with its creepy corporate tendrils. Switching on and off the iCloud services you do and don't want is very clear and simple.

        Google are very clever with the way they keep the geeks happy by doing the barest minimum to make Android appear theoretically open, but in practice I'm afraid it's no more open than iOS, and it certainly has a lot less respect for your privacy.

  4. Dan 55 Silver badge
    Meh

    K9 Mail

    And the problem is solved.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: K9 Mail

      Thanks for the pointer.

      Was just about to put in a request at Mozilla for a Thunderbird android port followed by a donation.

    2. Rampant Spaniel

      Re: Sod the Macbook Pro

      Exactly, IMAP \ POP access should get around this, at least until they block or limit that access. Cue a bunch of pop clients skinned as gmail replacements hitting the play store.

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: K9 Mail

      Not really, as you then have to host your own email server, handle backups etc... It's just pushing the problem around your plate.

      1. Dan 55 Silver badge

        Re: @AC 12:44

        Only if Google are thinking of yanking IMAP support, which I don't think will go down too well.

        1. Wave

          Re: @AC 12:44

          You won't get push email with free Gmail if you don't use the Google mail client as ActiveSync is no longer free. So your choices are 1. no push and no ads with another mail client, 2. push with ads with Google client, 3. pay $5/mo to Google and get push with any client, or 4. switch to outlook.com for mail which has free ActiveSync and get push with any client. If you want push with Gmail you will either pay with ads or with money.

          1. Hayden Clark Silver badge

            Re: @AC 12:44

            Nope. K9 mail supports IMAP IDLE, so you get something that quacks like push from most email servers.

      2. Craigness
        Coat

        Re: K9 Mail

        You could always switch to Outlook.

    4. DM2012

      Re: K9 Mail

      .... And.. installed. Thanks for the tip!

    5. busycoder99

      Re: K9 Mail

      K9 Mail is the best. I disliked the new gmail web interface so much I started running the open source version of Zimbra from a tiny server in my basement, and K9 / IMAP works very well with it. The app store also has some decent looking apps for tasks / briefcase, which replaces Google tasks / Google drive on my phone with the ones in Zimbra. I especially like the Briefcase feature, as I recently found out I can mount it as a DAV folder on my *nix laptop. I was having trouble getting my Nexus 4 to talk with my *nix laptop, but this solves the problem as I can upload stuff from the app, then get it on my computer via my own server.

      The only things I still rely on Google for on my phone is contacts and calendars. If I can find a way to integrate the those apps with Zimbra, I will be completely off the Google bandwagon for my personal communications and data. Goodbye Google, I won't miss ya.

  5. monkeyfish

    Seems a bit off to me. I realise there needs to be adverts for gmail in a browser, because you haven't paid for the service. But if your using gmail on android then you have paid for the service, it was included in the cost of the handset when you bought it... Also, the cost of an email app with no ads is between £1 and £2, are they going to charge that for a no-ads version? Because I'm pretty sure your phones google licence cost more than that already, if they're not making enough from android sales maybe they should charge more for it in the first place.

    1. Test Man

      You haven't paid for the service. You paid for the handset. The service is free.

      1. User McUser

        The service is free.

        Not if there are adverts. (That just means someone else is picking up the tab for you.)

    2. Mog0

      Ermm...Google don't charge for Android. That's the point. The manufacturers only have to pay for patent licensing for all the stuff Google ripped-off from other companies.

      No money is received directly by Google when you buy an Android handset.

      1. monkeyfish

        Ermm...Google don't charge for Android. That's the point. The manufacturers only have to pay for patent licensing for all the stuff Google ripped-off from other companies.

        No money is received directly by Google when you buy an Android handset.

        Ermm... No. Google charge for access to certain apps. What now? Ah yes, access to apps such as Gmail, Maps, Playstore etc. So, in fact, you do pay for the Gmail app already. If that's not enough to sustain their business, then maybe they should charge more for it? It's their business model after all, and they already push you to google search (obviously), which does indeed serve you adverts.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Are people idiots?

    I mean don't they understand the simple concept of give and take?

    You let Google handle storage and backup of gigabytes of your email, in exchange for scanning it and presenting relevant adverts?

    I have no problem with this, and surprised it took so long. I also know that being Google, it will be done in a smart way that doesn't pollute the app.

    Do the adverts on the Gmail web interface get in the way? Nope..

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Are people idiots?

      Wow, you Google apologists are unbelievable.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Are people idiots?

        I'm not the anon who posted above but apparently belong to the apologists group that was surprised to find there were no ads on mobile gmail. If I were them I'd have put that there right from the start.

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Are people idiots?

        Meanwhile you didn't counter his statement at all. If you can't refute it then STFU iTard.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Are people idiots?

          You keep on jerking your knee Kellic. You are just proving the point. Fandroids and Google apologists make Apple's fanbois look tame...

    2. phuzz Silver badge

      Re: Are people idiots?

      I sort of agree, I don't notice the ads on the web interface, but then my phone screen isn't 20" across so I think they'd be a lot more intrusive in the mobile app.

      As it is I really dislike using apps that have those annoying adverts across the bottom. Perhaps if they offered a paid version of the app without ads? I'd go for that. Otherwise it's off to find a new email program, ho hum.

    3. Law

      Re: Are people idiots?

      Don't mind ads on the web, hate ads in apps on my phone. They take up more room, slower for older phones, and it'll cheapen my Nexus experience.

      Having said that, it's an ad touting company, so get why they would do it... but I'll be switching to an ad free client (paid for if needed) until they revert the decision.

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Not so bad

    Looking at the Google services I do use, I don't think a few ads, in amongst the emails from the various shops I buy stuff from, would be too much of an inconvenience.

    If the alternative is no ads and having to pay for Gmail, Maps, Earth, Music, Translate as well as a relatively cheap 7" tablet and quite probably next phone, I'll take the ads thanks.

    If someone can show me free alternatives that are better than the Google stuff, I'll use it.

    1. silent_count

      Re: Not so bad

      For a mail client, I'll second Dan55's recommendation. K9 Mail rocks pretty hard. Till I read this article, I didn't even know there was a native Google mail client.

  8. MikeyD85

    Google need to learn

    That whilst most people are OK with in app ads, there are some of us that would pay for an ad free version.

    ALL Android apps with ads built in should have a paid for ad-free version.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Google need to learn

      Well you could get gmail for biz at $5 a month. Or use k9 for free.

  9. Longrod_von_Hugendong
    FAIL

    Yes cos Apple looks so bad now...

    lol, sleep with google dogs you get google fleas - hope you enjoy google ads everywhere... no wonder Android people like larger screen phones, because once you look at the amount of space the ad takes up on the screen you have a normal size screen.

    1. phuzz Silver badge

      Re: Yes cos Apple looks so bad now...

      I'm looking for a phone with a smaller screen than at present (4.6"), if only so it's smaller in my pocket, and I assume the power drain is less from a smaller screen. I have a desktop with duel monitors for looking at things if I need a lot of viewing space, I only use my phone for calls, texts and emails pretty much. (not that having a fully fledged, internet connected computer in my pocket isn't useful, and pretty damn awesome to me-from-20-years-ago)

    2. M Gale

      Re: Google Fleas

      Compared to iAds?

      Oh god, just one letter-swap out.

    3. Richard Jones 1

      Re: Yes cos Apple looks so bad now...

      humph alleged google fleas or the expensive apple maggots, a hard choice, I'll take the neither option please. No mobile internet and no crappy walled gardens or sales and marketing drivel.

      I feel better already..

  10. Sloppy Crapmonster

    Unsent messages in my inbox?

    What, am I required to forward all mail to the NSA myself now?

  11. Sampler

    Bandwidth

    Will we be recompensed for the cost of downloading these adverts? I know this isn't a big issue for folk who have unlimited/high data allowances and plenty of wifi failover - but not all places are equal.

    With any luck I'll be getting the internet fitted today in my apartment, I've been in Australia for three months and have had to rely on mobile data access (neither home nor work have wifi or any open/pay for services available - hell work have 35GB limit on internet fullstop, for an office of seven). The best data packages I've seen are 2GB allowance a month and north of $80 a month.

    Not being made of money (especially as changing countries is expensive) I've been trying to get by on 500mb (with unlimited free Facebook & Twitter) and it's been a bind, even careful use has me down to zero a week before the end of the month.

    Looks like I'll be switching to the native mail client with pop/imap instead of the gmail app then.

  12. Tom 64

    I'm already considering jumping on this news alone.

    DO NOT WANT.

    Time for a *shudder* Windoze mobe?

    1. HipposRule

      .

      What, no M$?

  13. Sealand

    Don't use Gmail, but nevertheless - to quote Mel Brooks: Harumpf!

  14. stucor

    could this new ads feature be for grouping spam emails???

    my gmail app is grouping all my spam advertising emails into 1 header this is great news could this be the adds part that is being feared if so then this would be a welcomed change as I am no longer sifting through my marketing mail to find the emails that are important my new header is called promotions if you need something the its 1 place to look

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