Gmail turns 20: Discover 10 hidden features you didn't know existed!
On April 1, 2024, Gmail hit a big milestone—it turned 20! That's a lot of years for an email service. These are its most powerful (and hidden) features.
During its journey, Gmail went through many changes and got lots of new features to make it even better for users. But sometimes, among all those updates, some really useful features got overlooked. Here are 10 of those hidden gems you might have missed.
- Undo Sending: Ever hastily hit the "Send" button only to realize seconds later that a glaring typo or a crucial detail was missing? Gmail provides a safety net with its "Undo Send" feature, giving you a brief window of time—defaulted to 5 seconds, extendable to 30 seconds—to retract an email after hitting send, sparing you from potential embarrassment or miscommunication.
- Scheduled Emails: Whether you're managing international correspondences or simply aiming for better email management, Gmail's "Schedule Send" feature allows you to compose emails ahead of time and schedule them to be sent at a later date and time, ensuring your messages reach recipients at the most opportune moment.
- Email Templates: Simplify your responses with Gmail's "Templates" feature, which lets you save and reuse frequently used replies or message formats. Whether it's a standard acknowledgment, a business inquiry, or a follow-up email, templates can save you time and effort by eliminating the need to retype the same content repeatedly.
- Offline Access: Stay connected even when offline with Gmail's "Offline Access" feature, enabling you to access your emails without an internet connection. Perfect for frequent travelers or those in areas with spotty connectivity, this feature allows you to read, compose, and organize emails offline, with changes syncing once you're back online.
- Forward as Attachments: Simplify email conversations by forwarding multiple emails as attachments rather than inline text. With Gmail's "Forward as Attachments" option, you can maintain the context and integrity of conversations, making it easier for recipients to navigate through related emails.
- Confidential Mode: Safeguard sensitive information with Gmail's "Confidential Mode," which adds an extra layer of protection to your emails. This mode prevents recipients from forwarding, copying, downloading, or printing the email's content and allows you to set expiration dates for message access, enhancing privacy and control over your communications.
- Advanced Search: Use the full potential of Gmail's search capabilities with advanced operators and filters. From searching by sender, recipient, or subject to filtering by attachment type or label, Gmail's advanced search features empower users to pinpoint specific emails with precision and efficiency.
- Account Access Sharing: Collaborate seamlessly by granting others access to your Gmail account. Whether it's for work-related projects or shared responsibilities, Gmail allows you to add additional users with full access privileges, enabling them to read, send, and manage emails on your behalf.
- Labels and Shortcuts: Keep your inbox organized and easily navigable with Gmail's labeling and shortcut features. By assigning labels to emails and creating custom shortcuts for frequent actions, you can streamline your email management process and improve productivity.
- Spam Identification: Combat spam effectively with Gmail's unique email addressing feature. By strategically adding periods or extra characters to your email address when registering on websites or subscribing to newsletters, you can identify the sources of spam and take necessary action to mitigate unwanted emails.