Which email provider is the least [not good]?

[Hatta]

I like the old standby, DIRECT EMail via yes good old Outlook. No pop up ads and the best feature COMPLETELY Private. I don't trust an online server to handle my EMail.

Your mail is still travelling through any number of intermediate mail servers until it ends up at your ISPs mail server where it sits and waits for you to retrieve it via IMAP or POP3. If you want private email, your only option is encryption. Unfortunately, most people don't care enough to use encryption.

[casterofdreams]

I use Outlook exchange at work. At home I use yahoo for specific reasons (commerce for example, limit risk) and Gmail due to the Android phone I have. My favorite is without a doubt Hotmail/Live. They are both the same (not sure why they have two @'s) but I like Skydrive and Office support with their web apps. Yeah Gmail has that type of integration but I'm a big fan of MS productivity stuff.

[CRTGAMER]

I like the old standby, DIRECT EMail via yes good old Outlook. No pop up ads and the best feature COMPLETELY Private. I don't trust an online server to handle my EMail.

Your mail is still travelling through any number of intermediate mail servers until it ends up at your ISPs mail server where it sits and waits for you to retrieve it via IMAP or POP3. If you want private email, your only option is encryption. Unfortunately, most people don't care enough to use encryption.

I know, it still travels thru servers, but I'm not placing mail to a dedicated Mail site. By private I'm alluding that online mail servers can market research EMail that they "own" and send the Spamalot. A Pop3 site can too, but not as widespread a problem.

Once I retrieve EMail from the POP3 server, its mine right on the hard drive including the FULL attached pic files. Preferred for quick retrieval over being held captive by an ad Java bloated site like Yahoo.

[BoringSupreez]

I use both Hotmail and Gmail. Gmail seems to be the best, although I haven't got any complaints about Hotmail.

Same here, except that I don't like Hotmail's loading times. It's my main account, though, because I created it years before my Gmail account.

[gtmtnbiker]

The private connection also prevents junk mail.

It has nothing to do with whether or not you get junk email.

[pakopako]

The key reasoning here is - if it isn't hotmail, it's a good E-mail provider, end of story. Because let's face it, hotmail sucks more than anything that has sucked before it. If Justin Bieber sucks now, justinbieber@hotmail makes him suck even more.

This is true on many levels. I've had Hotmail for ... wow, over 25 years now ... Live servers disconnect easily, are filled with bloat, and are hit with more spam than... I just got 4 spam mails while typing this post.

I dislike what Gmail is using with its text-less icon format for media-rich tablet browsing. I'm thankful I can turn it off and see words like "delete" and "address book".

Yahoo is the midway point -- it's not as bad as Live, but really not much better either. I have a few other throwaway mail accounts (Bigstring, Netzero, AOL, etc.), but those interfaces are fairly clunky and look to stay that way for as long as GMail exists.

[Jrecee]

In case this is helpful:

You can get the old non flashy yahoo mail back by lowering your screen res waaaay down and visiting the site. It will say your computer cant handle it and revert to classic. Permanently.

[gtmtnbiker]

I've had Hotmail for ... wow, over 25 years now ...

You mean 15 years? Hotmail started in 1996.

[indecks]

People still use yahoo and hotmail?

lol why? Gmail is the best.

[AznKhmerBoi]

Here are my picks from not so good ----> to ---> great!
4- aol mail
3- hotmail
2- yahoo mail
1- gmail