Gmail, Yahoo! or Hotmail?

[Nexus]

Gmail, Yahoo! or Hotmail: Which do you prefer and why?

[thatfox]

I much prefer Gmail. I got my Gmail account way back in 2005 and I've stuck with them because they were the best then and I still believe that they are the best now. I don't like Hotmail because it just seems like their spam filter does not work nearly as well as Gmail's (I can count the number of spam mail I've gotten using Gmail on one hand). And also because I prefer not to support Microsoft, although that's because of windows.

[HackerX]

My main acount is a hotmail account. I've had it since long before they were a microsoft company.

I have a gmail account too, but I don't think I could break from hotmail. I also think I've probably got a yahoo account, but it just doesn't measure to the other two.

Spam wise? My hotmail junk box has 5 items in it. My gmail spam folder has 800+. I really have no clue how much hotmail silently deletes though. I've never had an issue not receiving emails though

[dragonsscout]

I refer Gmail because I can get a Pop account for free, which allows me to set up a mail client to check it for me. I also like the way Google/Gmail is heading and dislike the way Yahoo is going.

[PRBori]

GMAIL because it provides enough space, provides live chat, and it's just much better than the rest.. and trust me I have a few hotmail and yahoo accounts which by now should be dead...

[lisakki]

They're all pretty much the same. I have all 3, one for a main account, two for aliases. It all depends on what email you started using first.

[SoupNazi]

Gmail has IMAP :)

[Fanowene]

Gmail. :-)
All my emails from other accounts (my school email, for example) get forwarded to it. And I can send emails from Gmail using other email accounts. That way I don't need to update contacts in multiple places and all my emails are in one place (I don't use Outlook, Thunderbird or anything like that). I also like that they use labels instead of folders.

I used to have a Hotmail account, but I got rid of that one last summer. Too slow, forwarding to non-Hotmail accounts not allowed.

I also had a Yahoo account at some point in time, but I never really got into it.

[redbaren]

I have a Gmail account and a Yahoo account. I use yahoo the most mainly because I like the layout witch is the classic layout, also its easy to use.

[hidden]

I have both a yahoo and a gmail account. I like gmail better.

[Synamon]

Hotmail, because I use msn messenger for IM (it's compatible with the people I chat to who have yahoo as well). I do have a couple of accounts, one I use to sign up for things (it gets all the spam and announcements crap and I rarely read it) and a main one I use for my correspondence.

[le Duc]

I've had all three, and have used Gmail almost exclusively for the past four years, primarily because of the strength and accuracy of its spam filter. I also like the search-and-organize features of its inbox and subfolders.

Google-talk is not so hot as an IM service, though... not enough smilies and text formatting and other enunciation tools...

[CaptainA]

I have a yahoo address only because it was the only one I found acceptable which I could get on my (old) phone. Don't use it much any more, but email from my main account is automatically forwarded, so I check it and clear it occasionally. My main account is none of the ones mentioned and I also have another free account for "at risk" use, which attracts all the spam. I would not use Hotmail because of limitations. I like what I know about Gmail but do not need another account.

[cha071c0rd3r]

Gmail - I actually have two gmail accounts, one personal and one for school; both work wonderfully. I used to have a hotmail account, but I stopped using it ever since I got gmail, it let way too much spam through. Plus, gmail is integrated with a variety of google tools and youtube, which is nice.

[notoppings]

I have all three, I use them all for various reasons to keep things orderly. I don't really have a preference but I have the same name on all three and if you think that was easy to do, let me tell you. It took a long time to find a name that was available for every account but once I got it I never let them go.

[Airius]

Yahoo. I don't use Gmail or Hotmail anymore.

[Savage300]

GMail. It's spam feature was better than my previous email account. I haven't used the other two.

[HackerX]

This thread is now a poll. Vote away.

[Rick]

Actually, I have all three, but I prefer the gmail account. I check my hotmail account extremely rarely. Mainly, I use it for things where I might get spammed. My yahoo address has become my job hunting account thru the years as I've needed it, and that is the only reason I've kept it current.

Gmail is my account of choice. It is most user friendly.

[Krazy P]

Gmail, Yahoo! or Hotmail: Which do you prefer and why?

None of the above - but that shouldn't surprise anyone!

[Bioplasmoid]

Yahoo, because I haven't heard as many bad rumours about them. :p And theres just something so fluffy and nice about their logo. :rolleyes:

[ThaiGreenTea]

Gmail, an inordinately large storage space which never stops expanding. Love it.

[jaythej]

i've been using my hotmail account for years now so i can't bear to switch to anything else.

[metamagnet]

anyone else you a university mail account?
mine's incredibly efficient (and ad free! :) )

[dragonsscout]

I too use my university account, mostly for school, businessy stuff, or temporary emails though.

[shalalith]

I use 2 gmail accounts, one for spam accounts, and one for friends. I then have my university email for business/school stuff. I like gmail because of the free imap since i use outlook.

[Homini Lupus]

I have an university account but I look at it through Gmail (I would loose myself if I had to look at too many accounts only to see if somebody looked for me). Since now, I've been satisfied with Gmail and as many of my friends use it it has some "network advantages" (like the possibility to use mails as "mini forums" by answering to all of them and visualising the various answers in a cascade). As long as it works efficiently, I'll stick to it.

[zibber]

Gmail, because it has the least terse load times and a nice minimal design.

(The personalized ads, referring to the contents of your private e-mails, not so much.)

[hidden]

My university account is currently through Gmail. Though I only use it for school correspondence.

[Outlander]

Is anyone here aware that Gmail has the worst privacy policy out of the three?

[shalalith]

Is anyone here aware that Gmail has the worst privacy policy out of the three?

Yes, but their spam filter makes up for it.

[punkyplatypus]

My first account was with yahoo. I joined because of the yahoo games and yim. I don't use either, but I still consider this my main account. I opened a hotmail account to see if it were anything special, but it wasn't so I haven't touched it since. I have a gmail account because my university converted our school accounts to gmail. It's modified with extra features (it has a directory for all school email addresses w/ names). I like the format, but I use it strictly for schoolwork.
If I had to choose a favorite (like in the poll), I'd choose yahoo. Mainly because I'm more familiar with it.

[schwartzie]

I've throw-away accounts at all of them. And a yahoo account that is also a phone in/out ($20/yr. for a phone number to receive inbound calling in my local exchange and a penny a minute for outbound to pots lines; the quality is surprisingly good, but some wireless carriers are inaccessible... *annoying*)

[Sir Paul]

G mail, because life is too short to suffer flashing advertisements.

[Motor Jax]

heh, work relate e-mail for work... mostly use yahoo...

unless i want my e-mail secure, then i use Hotmail (<< 128 SSL encryption :) )

[reb]

personally, they all suck...having used all of them at one time or another over a dial up connection, they 'went graphics', and now it is a major event to even get into my email account. i use firefox, so i turned graphics off, or i'd be out of business...i need simple, no graphics for a 5kbps max upload/download to work with a darn...been looking into linux, and perhaps some kind of 'non mainstream' email system...i don't even like videos/youtube...i jsut want words and to communicate with my friends....yes, yes...i am a dinosaur....

[Zzyber]

I've been using my yahoo for years as well.