Gmail was launched in April 2004 and over the years has become the most favoured email client among a huge amount of users. Now, despite so many users we are sure that Gmail is still not being used to its fullest advantage. We have compiled a list of 12 tricks that will help you get the most out of Gmail. Check out the list and let us know what you think of it.
12. Find large attachments
You can search for emails with big attachments by typing ‘larger_than:’ in the search box. So, if you typed ‘larger_than:12m’, you’ll be given a list of all emails that are larger than 12 MB in size.
11. Turn emails into tasks
When you need to transform an email into a task right away, simply click on ‘More’ and select ‘Add to Tasks’. This will create a new entry in the Tasks window that pops up. The entry will contain a link to redirect you to the email.
10. Mute irrelevant conversations
If you find yourself caught in the conversation that has nothing to do with you, simply click on ‘More’ and then click on ‘Mute’ from the drop down menu. The messages keep getting added to the conversation, however, it doesn’t spring back up to your inbox.
9. Create some new addresses
For Gmail addresses dots don’t matter, that is to say that john.wick@gmail.com and johnwick@gmail.com are the same. You can therefore use a number of different email addresses when registering for newsletters and have the emails sorted via the email address used.
8. Import other email
You can use the Accounts and Import tab in Settings to import emails from other accounts you own and then have them forwarded via POP3 protocol.
7. Undo sender’s remorse
Open Labs tab under Settings and you’ll find the Undo Send Tool. Once this has been activated you are able to pull back messages that you didn’t intend to send. It will work within a delay of 5-30 seconds during which you can undo the send email option you just clicked on.
6. Circle your contacts
If you can group your contacts, then this is another way of sorting your emails. By opening the Circles list on the left of Gmail inbox, you can group together contacts and then your emails will be sorted by groups.
5. Reach for the stars
You can sort out emails by applying a multitude of stars to emails. In Settings pane, click on General tab and under the headings of Stars you can add different kinds of icons and colours. Hovering over an icon will let you know the keyword to search for when looking for an email.
4. Re-categorize messages
You need to simply drag an email to the tab (primary, social, etc.) where you want it and similar emails to go.
3. Enable offline email
If you install the Gmail Offline add-on, you can read the cached emails and work on draft even without an Internet connection.
2. Find old or new emails by date
Use ‘before:yyyy/mm/dd’ or ‘after:yyyy/mm/dd’ in the drop-down search box to search for emails after or before a specific date.
1. Keyboard shortcuts
Yes, they still exist and make your life quite easy. You can use ctrl+enter for sending a message, J and K will help you move between conversations while R can be used for replying. Complete list of shortcuts is in the picture above.
