Checking for mail is an endless spinning wheel

This thread http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1692692&tstart=25 may be your problem with the email. ATT servers have been down since early morning of the 2nd. Edge network has been up and down intermittently. Not just an iPhone problem, as my Palm Treo is also on ATT and has not been able to receive or send email since morning of the 2nd.

Claude

You guys are not alone, this issue has been happening since 2.0 first came out about almost 2 months ago. Here's a huge thread about it: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1603761&tstart=0

The problem exists in 2.0, 2.0.1 and 2.0.2. So no, it's not a 2.0.2 only issue.

I am a recent 3G owner and have experienced this same issue. Try re-booting the iphone, go back to the apple symbol on the screen. My check for email subsequent to the reboot occurred in the blink of the eye! No explanation, it just worked!

This happens to my iPhone 3G as well. Quite often, the problem is a wireless connection that really isn't a connection at all. What I mean is, those wireless services that are technically open, but as soon as you try to load a page in the browser a login screen pops up. So, technically speaking, you are connected to the Internet, but all traffic is being stopped pending successful login. I have not had the opportunity to test whether logging in then solves the problem, as that frequently entails specifying a mobile phone number to be billed for the connection, receiving a code by SMS, and entering that code in the browser.

I have the same problem. the "connecting..." wheel spins and spins at the bottom of the mail program, but i can tell (from the lack of a spinning data wheel at the top of the screen) that no data is coming or going. if i exit mail, the internet seems to work fine. so i am convinced it is a problem with the mail program.

I have an old 8GB iphone, not a 3G. though the problem seems to have only begun since i installed the new 2.0 firmware.

I find that a reboot solves it, only temporarily. Though as others have noted, it happens too often, multiple times a day, so I don't think rebooting every time the problem occurs is a feasible solution.

anyone else know what the problem may be? could it be a problem with the 2.0 firmware?

thoughts? fixes?

I have an old school 16GB and I upgraded to 2.0 the day it was released. I have not had any issues with mail until a few days ago. Also, new composed mail goes into oblivion, not to recipients or sent items/draft/outbox folders. I have to reboot the mail program each time I need to send an email.
I have about 6 Apps installed also - maybe this has something to do with it?

same as me. emails that i compose and "send" disappear and are never sent. the "connecting" wheel keeps spinning and i can't send or receive. i have a bunch of apps installed as well.

like i said, i upgraded to 2.0 when it was released and this problem has only been happening subsequent to the upgrade.

sounds like a pretty common problem.

i do not think rebooting every time you want to use mail is good for the phone, nor is it practical.

I have the same problem with both the new 3G and our original phone ever since 2.0 upgrade. I don't reboot to correct the problem. I simply force-close the mail app by holding down the home button until the app closes, takes about 8-9 seconds. Then the problem goes away when I restart the mail app. I'm sure it's a software problem and it's quite wide-spread. Surely Applie is working on fixing this soon.

You don't have to reboot the phone for the "workaround". All you have to do is whe you are in email and it is "still connecting" hold the "Home" key for at least 5 seconds (this kills the current program which is mail in this case) and then start mail again. Email will once again flow...

it seems to work for me... good luck

Ever since I upgraded to the latest software mail has big problems. Sometimes I get the spinning wheel of death. But my biggest complaint is that push or fetch seems to just stop working. Several times a day I go to check mail and it shows the last update to be many hours ago. I have to hit the rounded arrow to have it check again and then get all the mail. I don't get a notification while it is in the holster on my hip. I also need to re-boot it at least once a day when it will refuse to get any mail. This latest update has big problems. Not happy!

I appreciate the link and your attempt to help out, but in no way is this a long-term solution. I find it very interesting that this would happen to so many (as it has) at the same time. On a side note, I wanted to clarify that I do most of my emailing while on a wifi connection and have my own personal pop/smtp accounts, although symptoms still persist while using Edge.

Eh.

Have the same problem with the 3g iphone being unable to check the emails or open web pages. it happens more often after i hang up a call and try to use the internet right after (email or safari). the "solutions" like previously posted: soft-hard reset, kill apps.

I have the same problem. It's incredibly frustrating. So far, I've reinstalled my email accounts from scratch three times! The last time, based on something I read online, prior to re-installation I turned off the iPhone's WiFi and reset the network settings. I thought I had it licked, because it properly retrieved email for almost a day -- a record since I bought the iPhone a month ago. Like many people, sometimes re-setting the device fixes the problem, sometimes not. But needing to do that two, three times a day is clearly not a solution. Especially when it doesn't always fix the problem. I have to say, my love and loyalty for Apple is being strained greatly by this whole experience. I can accept getting a one-off defective product -- sometimes that happens in the manufacturing process and any good company will replace that product. But it seems in this case, Apple (knowingly?) released a fairly pricey device way before it was ready for prime time. Thousands, maybe tens of thousands of people are having the same difficulties. I hope Apple solves this issue soon. I'm actually becoming jealous of my friends who have properly functioning Blackberries!

With 2.0.1 Mail, I would still get the eternal (and fruitless) "CONNECTING..." cycle, with no new email, a couple of times a day.

With 2.0.2 update, same problem.

This is with 3 POP accounts on servers I control and it is not a conflict of multiple machines/devices checking and the box being locked.

Mail is unreliable on iPhone and you need to force quit Mail or reboot phone to try to get your email, which in real life does not work.

If one was "oncall" via email, this device/software would get you fired.