My iMac Mail account deletes mail from the server on retrieval of an email - i carefully housekeep my emails on my iMac and only have a hundred or so in my inbox BUT my new (first) iPhone has downloaded 17000 emails - every email i have ever had since i signed up with NTL years ago. Is there a way to bulk delete them from the iPhone AND stop them re-appearing. Help much appreciated.
iPhone 5, iOS 6.1
I know a way to bulk delete them. In your Inbox, select edit (top right). Select the first email. Then hold down the Delete button, and deselect the email you just tapped. Then let go of the delete button. This should delete all emails if I remember correctly. Be aware this may delete all emails in the folder that you are in.
Penandpalette, it does not look like your emails really get deleted from the server on retrieval to your iMac. When you housekeep your emails in your iMac you are deleting them from the Mail app on the iMac but clearly not from the server. When your iPhone accesses the server, it downloads all the emails that are still on the server and therefore you got the 17000 emails.
You have not mentioned whether your mail account is IMAP or POP, but regardless, it is clear that your 17000 emails are there and you need to delete them from the server unless you want them again in the future to load in any other computer or device that gets to sync with your email server.
So by all means, delete them from the phone but also make sure you delete them from the server, too.
Brilliant - thanks Michael - they have all been deleted from the iPhone - i had to tweak your instructions slightly - i had to select 2 emails, hold Delete button, deselect both emails and then release Delete button - now only have 45 - thanks again...
No problem. I learnt that a while ago. Apple should make it easier or more obvious to do this.
Thanks Rojmer - don't understand why emails are still sitting on NTL's server - will log on and delete them - much obliged for advice...
17000 emails appear on new iPhone
