There’s no need to abandon your iCloud email address when you get a new Android device
If you’re moving to an Android device from an iPhone or iPad, there’s every possibility you’re already set up and using an iCloud email address. Android devices require you to have a Google account and accompanying Gmail address, but you might want to keep using your iCloud account for email. And that’s just fine.
The good news is it is perfectly possible to get your iCloud email address up and running on your Android device. It’s pretty straight forward but does involve a little effort on your part. Head on past the break to see how.
Besides the Gmail app on your Android phone or tablet, you should also have an app just called “Email.” (There are also dozens of great alternatives on Google Play.) How it looks may vary from phone to phone – I’m using the stock LG Email app on the G2 in this example – but the overall function should be the same since you need to set up your iCloud account using IMAP and SMTP.
However it looks, the key information remains the same. Here’s a quick checklist of what you need to do for incoming mail:
- When asked for the IMAP server enter imap.mail.me.com.
- Your username is the name part of your @icloud.com address.
- Your password should be the same as your Apple ID password.
- Certificates should be set to SSL, or SSL (accept all certificates) if you’re having issues connecting.
- The port number needs to be 993.
After you’ve entered all the above information, hit next and you’ll be taken to the setup page for the SMTP section for outgoing mail. Again, the key information is the same however your Email app looks, and here’s the checklist:
- When asked for the SMTP server enter smtp.mail.me.com.
- Username and password should be entered as above.
- Set certificates to either SSL or TLS (again you may need to hit the option to accept all certificates). Personally, I had to use the TLS option.
- The port number needs to be 587.
- If asked about SMTP authentication being required, hit yes.
Hopefully, the details above should be enough to get you up and running. It’s a little fiddly to get set up – especially if you’ve come from the iPhone which does it all for you – but it works, and it gets your existing email on to your new Android device.
Of course, there may be other apps out there that do this for you, or you might know of some tips and tricks to make things run a little smoother. If you’ve got anything that’ll help, drop it into the comments below!