A number of users are reporting iPhone 2.1 firmware appears to disable automatic email retrieval under certain circumstances, according to active Apple support forums. Specifically related to the 2.1 update loaded onto various models of the phone, users report the phone will not automatically check for mail, whether set to fetch new items on a schedule or to push mail in real time, and will only download new mail when asked to do so manually.
It is uncertain at this time how widespread the problem may be, though at least one forum participant reports having “just received a telephone call from [an iPhone] product specialist, and he confirms that 6 other iPhones in their building are exhibiting the exact same problem,” adding, “This is a global problem. This in their eyes is a ‘major’ issue and is getting escalated as we speak.”
Is your iPhone running 2.1 failing to get mail unless you ask it to? Let us know in comments below.
Lonnie Lazar is a writer-musician-web designer-attorney. He writes about Apple for Cult of Mac and Mac|Life, and about VoIP and telecommunications for Voxilla. Follow Lonnie on Twitter @LonnieLazar, join the Cult of Mac on Facebook, and find Lonnie’s photos on Flickr.
84 responses to “iPhone 2.1 Firmware May Cause Email Retrieval Problems”
Same symptoms here. Only one of the three IMAP accounts on my iPhone check mail at their regular 15 minute intervals. This began with the 2.1 upgrade.
Yep. Only when I click on my Mail icon will it fetch new data. Quite an inconvenience.
The same here. iPhone stopped checking my mail after upgrade to 2.1.
“this must be a global problem . . . “
Not on my planet. Email is working just fine.
been going on since I downloaded. Does apple Q&A anything?
I’ve seen the same thing. The accounts do check occasionally but the majority of the time I have to force it to retrieve email on my 3 IMAP accounts.
Yes, I have the same issue although it seems sometime it works then all of a sudden I won’t get anything unless I open Mail App and lot of email will download from hours previous.
Yep. Same problem. Sometimes just won’t get mail. Have to turn off and then turn on to get mail. They solve one problem then create another. Bring on 2.2.
Several times a day I have to shut off the phone and restart in order to get it to download email. I have both an account on Push and an account on retrieve. It is the same for either one.
I’ve been dealing with this for a week. No email showing up on my iPhone 3G. Push on. Push off and Fetch.
I only get email if I open email on the iPhone. And I only have a MobileMe email.
I restored iPhone. Heck I reinstalled OS X on my MBP. Nothing helped.
Finally got tech support. They had me delete the email account on the iPhone. And reconfigure again. I did. I got the two test emails instantly. Hung up. email stops all over again within minutes.
Insane.
I have the problem on my 8GB 3G iPhone as described in he article. It doesn’t bother me because at least it doesn’t fail to pick up my mail when i ask…. prior to 2.1 i was seeing the defect that the email app cycled in “Checking mail” but never finished.
Well, I’ll knock on wood before I say this, however all is well with my email retrieval right now, and I installed 2.1 the first day it was available. However, I only have 1 IMAP and 1 Exchange account.
Yes! I am having this problem. I figured some setting had just been altered and I was crazy and unable to find it amongst the mail settings.
Glad to know I am not nuts.
Same problems here. IMAP is supposed to check every 30 minutes but doesn’t unless I click into the app. Just started with 2.1. Hope they fix it soon!
Same here. Running 2.1 and living currently in Chile.
Not matter which of the 4 email accounts I have registered in my iPhone, NONE of them are making their famous “fetch”. Not all are pop accounts, so it seems that this really is a global problem!!
Same here. Noticed it yesterday and thought it was just my phone – glad to hear I’m not alone!
Yeah, I have just that problem with my iPhone. It has stopped checking for emails. I’m in Sweden.
I have a Gmail IMAP account.
I was the one who was quoted and spoke to the Apple product specialist.
Fetch/Push will not work while your iPhone is:
1. Running on 2.x or later; and
2. On Battery; and
3. Asleep.
If your iPhone is plugged into a power source and allowed to sleep e-mail still comes in.
To David: On ‘our’ planet we don’t constantly use the device which prevents it from sleeping. Let your device sleep for over 15 mins and then send yourself an e-mail. Very repeatable.
Same problem…. When I refresh my mail manually, I’ve got 10 or 12 emails, I must have received it 2 or 3 hours before….
Same MAJOR problem here. I sure hope Apple is awake to this issue or at least hears the alarm going off. No time to snooze.
I’m having the same issue.
Is anyone else getting tired of the string of bugs that has accompanied 2.x? It’s excessive. All I want is my phone to work. Nothing fancy, just work!
Same here and only since 2.1. Seems to happen more when I’ve had wifi switched on and then go back to 3g.
From Bogota, Colombia: I do have the same problem with the email app after uprading to 2.1. I’ve done everything possible to fix it thinking it was some settings that I missconfigured. It’s good to know it is not my fault but Apples culprit. Let’s hope they -Apple- will patch it up soon.
after updated to 2.1, some mails cannot display japanese in my iphone…
nope . . still no issues here.
It is a very average phone. I use my Nokia all the time now.
Yep, same problem here too. Didn’t Apple claim 2.1 improved mail fetching?!
I had mail retrieving problems since the first release. I don’t have reception at home (massive walls), the iPhone tries to connect and then the email application seems to get confused. Even if I go out and have perfect reception, I can’t receive emails until I really switch off and on the iPhone. And this hasn’t change with 2.1 as well. Disappointing!
E-mail has never worked properly on this device. My first I-phone was immediately useful and never had this problem. The initial 3G firmware and the subsequent have been intermittent in their ability to deliver e-mail reliably. WiFi on, WiFi off. It doesn’t matter. E-mail will work for a day and then lock up. “Updating” begins when you enter the account and it never stops. I am beginning to equate the Apple, circular search icon with the Windows hourglass. Let’s hope that Jobs’ I-phone doesn’t start exhibiting the Blue Screen of Death that we Windows users have learned to fear.
Fetch/Push isn’t working here either. And, like others, this problem began after upgrading to 2.1.
Same problem here. Trying to sync against a exchange server (2003). Worked fine on 2.0( on first gen iphone). After the upgrade to 2.1 it stopped pushing. Manual fetching still ok. (
I have two POP accounts. Every 2-3 days, iPhone will stop downloading mail altogether – must reboot it. Problem is preceded by above complaint where it won’t download automatically; only manually.
I never post comments anywhere, but this issue deserves it. I was happy to pay $200 to leave my former carrier to go to AT&L (which has less coverage in my area) in order to have an iPhone 3G. So far I’ve regretted my choice every day.
2.0 – Unstable, crashed constantly.
2.0.1 – Still unstable but at least I could read a couple of messages and even send one before an app died.
2.1 – Will not check email at all unless I hard reset, and then only the first time and I keep it from going into standby.
I have to admit… if the Dream was out I might switch to T-mobile tomorrow. At this point unless 2.1.1/2.2/whatever the next version is that Apple releases is SOLID I won’t be able to justify buying an Apple product again… and I’ve owned plenty of Macs in my life that I loved. I will also be forced to move to another phone, I’m already considering unlocked GSM versions that will help me avoid the $200 termination fee (again) thanks to Apple.
It’s absurd that these phones are subject to such widespread and fundamental problems. I’m highly technical and so far the most stable solution I’ve found is a jailbroken 2.0.1 with no extra apps. For whatever reason it’s ever so slightly less prone to crashing. I’ve restored this phone no fewer than 30 times with both factory fresh and jailbroken flavors in hopes of somehow bringing stability+functionality (primarily email) to it and have failed utterly. I’ve used and tested dozens upon dozens of phones, mostly smartphones, in my career and have never once found as many issues as I do with my iPhone today. Even the early versions of Windows Mobile/CE allowed me to make calls without dropped messages and had a relatively stable mail application.
So disappointing…
I started having these problems with MobileMe, Gmail and exchange accounts a couple of days after the upgrade. After seeing no response from Apple on the Apple>Support discussion board I sent an email to sjobs at apple.com.
I did exchange information via email and telephone with “Mark”, an Executive Relations representative who ultimately told me there was nothing to be done and it should be corrected in an upcoming patch. When I inquired about the expected delivery of this patch he said “it could be days, weeks or a couple of months.”
Back to Blackberry then…..
My wife and I have 16GB 3G phones. Prior to 2.1, they were both fine, both for aol and POP accounts. When my wife upgraded to 2.1, she immediately had problems. I ‘upgraded’ just a few days ago, and lost e-mail capability entirely – e-mail could not be retrieved automatically or manually and could not be sent. Just a few minutes ago I turned off the phone. After turning it back on, the e-mails finally worked, both coming and going. Besides this glitch, I am fairl happy with the iPhone. I would like to have copy/paste capability, but other than that, it is an excellent device.
Same here. Haven’t had a proper fetch for Gmail IMAP since 2.1
i am having this problem.
i have 16 gb first gen iphone that worked fine pre-upgrade.
now i can’t get any hotmail to download (using izymail) and i can’t add a work webmail account. wtf????
yep! Same here. How do you think I found this thread? :) I did a search for “why isn’t my iPhone checking email”
Have to hard boot the iPhone 4-5x each day to get reasonable email throughput – push or fetch, 3g, Edge or Wifi doesn’t matter. Apple said to try a new SIM but no such luck.
I dig the iPhone…but Apple needs to address this or pack it in and just stick to music and photos.
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Same with me, but I can’t even force it. It only happens after making for receiving a phone call. I have to restart it every single time after a call in order to get any mail at all.
Since I have upgraded to 2.1, I have no email access to my exchange server. I restored everything and created a new account. After a day the same issue. I am restoring now my iphone everyday and. Can you imagine this with this with your LINUX OS?
Apple- really poor service.
I would never recommend iphone.