Today we reported on an effort by our pals over at Hotmail to make a little hay on some of Google’s recent negative publicity, by posting 3 simple steps on how to switch from Gmail to Hotmail.  Since then, in the comments here and on the Inside Windows Live blog post have pointed out a number of reasons why some users may not be quite ready to make the switch (back) to Hotmail, and we thought they were worth pointing out.

IMAP/EAS
Hotmail does not support IMAP, which Wikipedia calls “one of the two most prevalent Internet standard protocols for e-mail retrieval” (the other being POP3, which Hotmail does support, but is far less functional), and that can be a problem if you’re trying to get your email onto your phone, or into a desktop email client.  What Hotmail does support is Exchange ActiveSync (version 2.5), which can be used on an iPhone or Android Phone to sync push email, calendar, and contacts.

Hotmail is supported by Apple iOS5 devices, and there are apps, for Android and even a newly released one for the Kindle Fire, so it’s getting easier to get Hotmail whatever you use, but still, IMAP is a standard protocol while Exchange ActiveSync is a proprietary, licensed Microsoft product, one that is supported by Gmail and not Hotmail, and a reason some don’t make the switch.

Calendar
A couple of commenters on the Inside Windows Live post mentioned Google Calendar as superior to Hotmail (was Windows Live) Calendar.  First, ControlZ said:

The only way Gmail currently beats Hotmail now is with the Calendar, and maybe Contacts as well. Calendar really needs search and a cleaner interface… A bit like Google Calendar. And Contacts again needs a cleaner interface, with the option to, for example, add more email fields.

I love the changes being made to Hotmail, but contacts and especially calendar need an update.

and Tomasz Olędzki added:

Reason #2 – lack of Hotmail Calendar sync in many PC/MAC desktop calendar apps (Gmail uses CalDav)

On our post as well, calendar quality was a big complaint:

From Matthiew Nate:
I am satisfied with the change regarding emails but disappointed by the calendar experience.

From doctorwhofan98:
I am also not happy with the hotmail calendar experience. It really needs search, and a cleaner interface. I personally prefer Hotmail’s interface to Gmails.

and from “0110110101100100”
calendar and contacts management. They suck. Really.

Ads
Hotmail’s somewhat glaring display ads were also mentioned, both here and on the Inside Windows Live post, in opposition to Gmail’s somewhat less obtrusive text based ads.  Back in June, SkyDrive removed a skyscraper ad to make more room for a cleaner interface, as we noted at the time:

One interesting side note – Anand Babu told us that a decision was made to take back the real estate from the former right side skyscraper ad, they simply needed more room. So instead of an ad, SkyDrive visitors will see a contextual menu

Maybe Hotmail will come to the same conclusion!

The Brand
Ok, elephant in the room time.  Hotmail just has a negative connotation in many places and among many people around the world.  In fact, back in February 2007, Microsoft attempted to change the name of Hotmail (to Windows Live Mail), but quickly rethought their “strategy”, as outlined in a Hotmail team blog post at the time:

We also found that many users were extremely loyal to the Hotmail brand and perceived the beta as an upgrade to Hotmail. In fact, our most loyal users have been very happy with Hotmail for years and while they loved the improvements in the beta, some were a bit confused by name change.
As we prepare to launch the final version of our new web mail service, we recognize the importance of ensuring that our 260+ million existing customers come over to the new service smoothly and without confusion. By adopting the name “Windows Live Hotmail”, we believe we’re bringing together the best of both worlds – new and old. We’re able to offer the great new technology that Windows Live has to offer while also bringing the emotional connection many existing and loyal users have with Hotmail.

So while negative connotations for Hotmail persist, Microsoft may be less than willing to change the name of a service that’s used by hundreds of millions of people around the world.  We do have a suggestion, however (but don’t even get us started on the missed opportunity with the @live.com domain!) – why not make better use of the custom domains features of Windows Live Admin Center?  We’re sure that many people aren’t even aware that you can use your own domain name connected to a Hotmail account (our @liveside.net addresses do exactly that), but it would seem to be a solution for those who want the convenience of Hotmail but can’t quite stomach the Hotmail name.

One positive note: Microsoft has come full circle on the importance of continuing to improve Hotmail, and we’re hopeful that these deficiencies are already being addressed.  What will it take to get you to switch to Hotmail?

LiveSide.net

Company saves more than $ 500,000 in costs, while giving employees a complete 360-degree view of customers.
Microsoft PressPass, Information for Journalists – Press Releases

Apple is always looking to improve its hardware while maintaining a huge profit margin and is now reportedly looking at changing the company that supplies the ambient light sensor for iOS devices as well as bringing in a new supplier for its programmable gamma buffers.

According to a report by DigiTimes,…

Neowin.net

Australia’s  biggest telco is considering migrating customers of its BigPond Internet service provider division from their own in house versions of email, photos and online storage to Windows Live, according to a post on Australian tech site Delimiter.

Delimiter quotes Telstra spokesperson Craig Middleton, saying that it has been talking to customers for some time about evolving their current email platform:

“One of the options we’re considering is to integrate our email services with Microsoft’s Windows Live Suite platform to offer new applications and services to our customers,” Middleton said. The executive stipulated the idea was “only a proposal” at the moment, with several options for the future of the email platform being considered — although he couldn’t say what other paths Telstra was looking at.

Telstra wouldn’t move everything “to the cloud” apparently, maintaining a duplicate bare bones version of its platform “to allow it to meet law enforcement requests for email interception from Australian authorities”:

According to sources, Telstra would retain control of the systems which manage the usernames of its customers, as well as account and password management functions. However, it would shut down the current in-house systems which provide customers with online photo and file storage, blogging and even anti-spam functions under the BigPond.com banner, in favour of migrating to the equivalent Windows Live options.

Windows Live extends beyong just email; it’s a comprehensive suite of online offerings providing web, POP and SMTP access to users’ email, online storage and file synchronisation through the SkyDrive and Mesh products, hosted blogging through WordPress.com, calendaring, photo gallery and instant messaging functionality and even contact, calendar and task syncronisation through Microsoft ActiveSync.

According to Delimiter, while exact figures for Telstra’s customer email inboxes aren’t known, the company is “known to have 2.2 million DSL subscribers alone, and many more customers using its HFC and mobile networks”.

LiveSide.net

With new deployment, company increases ROI by 595 percent and resolves data entry issues.
Microsoft PressPass, Information for Journalists – Press Releases

Company also improves user adoption, employee collaboration and business intelligence.
Microsoft PressPass, Information for Journalists – Press Releases

Microsoft is gradually enabling Hotmail push email support for a wide range of phones including the iPhone, Windows Phone devices and Android.

Microsoft is introducing the support using Exchange ActiveSync, available on nearly 300 million phones. With push email you can sychronize email between your phone and the web, and also…

Neowin.net

In late 2009, the Enterprise team here at Google launched a new tool, Google Commerce Search, to help online retailers improve site usability and raise conversions. We’re excited to see results and metrics coming in that show the impact this new product is having. One company, DiscountOfficeItems.com, decided to switch to Google Commerce Search from a sluggish homegrown solution and almost immediately saw sizable lifts in revenue, traffic, transactions, and average order size.

Tim Horton, CEO, will join Nitin Mangtani, Senior Product Manager at Google Enterprise on a live webcast Thursday, March 4 at 10:00 a.m. PST / 1:00 p.m. EST to share his experience and answer questions about their decision to switch to Google Commerce Search.

You can read more from Tim Horton on the Google Enterprise blog. Event details:

How Discount Office Items Increased Revenue 6% by Switching to Google Commerce Search
Thursday, March 4, 2010
10:00 a.m. PST / 1:00 p.m. EST

We hope you’ll join us for this live event!

Posted by Anna Bishop, Enterprise Search team

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