Google Mail was released in April 2004 as a 
private beta and released as a public beta in February 2007. Pros for Gmail include no version sunsets and new features are managed by Google, and, although an e-mail client may be used on one’s own computer with Gmail, only a web browser is required.
With these pros can there be any cons? Certainly. Notice that even after nearly four years, Gmail is still beta software. Beta software means that the user assumes the risk: Google can delete, lose, or destroy user data and have no liability for having done so (see the software releases sidebar): A convenient way to escape from responsibility for service or product.
Microsoft has extensive online support as well as human-powered voice support. In addition, there are thousands of certified support engineers around the world for Outlook and Exchange software. Google gives online support via FAQs and user support groups, but unless one is subscribed to the Google Apps Premier Edition, Google gives no human-powered support whatsoever.
Want to migrate from Gmail to some other e-mail service or software? The e-mail is on Google’s hardware, and unless measures have been taken to ensure access to e-mail data, the difficulties of migration will surely be compounded by not having the e-mail data directly under one’s own control.
At present one gets 4.5 GB of storage with a free Gmail account. Sounds like a lot? Since 2002, I have accumulated four GB of archived e-mails plus two GB of active e-mails; I don’t consider myself an especially demanding e-mail user.
Google guarantees 99.9% uptime plus 25 GB of storage for its Google Apps Premier Edition but makes no uptime guarantees for free Gmail. The $50 per user per year Google charges for its Premier Edition makes the uptime guarantee attractive until one calculates that 99.9% uptime computes to more than eight hours or one business day of downtime. Imagine the customer reaction if Honda guaranteed 99.9% uptime for a Civic!
private beta and released as a public beta in February 2007. Pros for Gmail include no version sunsets and new features are managed by Google, and, although an e-mail client may be used on one’s own computer with Gmail, only a web browser is required.With these pros can there be any cons? Certainly. Notice that even after nearly four years, Gmail is still beta software. Beta software means that the user assumes the risk: Google can delete, lose, or destroy user data and have no liability for having done so (see the software releases sidebar): A convenient way to escape from responsibility for service or product.
Microsoft has extensive online support as well as human-powered voice support. In addition, there are thousands of certified support engineers around the world for Outlook and Exchange software. Google gives online support via FAQs and user support groups, but unless one is subscribed to the Google Apps Premier Edition, Google gives no human-powered support whatsoever.
Want to migrate from Gmail to some other e-mail service or software? The e-mail is on Google’s hardware, and unless measures have been taken to ensure access to e-mail data, the difficulties of migration will surely be compounded by not having the e-mail data directly under one’s own control.
At present one gets 4.5 GB of storage with a free Gmail account. Sounds like a lot? Since 2002, I have accumulated four GB of archived e-mails plus two GB of active e-mails; I don’t consider myself an especially demanding e-mail user.
Google guarantees 99.9% uptime plus 25 GB of storage for its Google Apps Premier Edition but makes no uptime guarantees for free Gmail. The $50 per user per year Google charges for its Premier Edition makes the uptime guarantee attractive until one calculates that 99.9% uptime computes to more than eight hours or one business day of downtime. Imagine the customer reaction if Honda guaranteed 99.9% uptime for a Civic!
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist)
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