What's the Best Free E-Mail Service?

Compared with all the other amazing things you can get for free on the Web today, from high-speed Internet service to long-distance phone calls, e-mail may seem like a snoozer. First introduced by Hotmail five years ago-a lifetime in Internet time-free e-mail is now offered by more than 300 companies. But the concept's staying power and wide adoption mean better service and more plentiful options have evolved for consumers. Unlike a lot of other no-cost offerings, free e-mail is in its second generation; the idea has already won over users and investors, and now providers are getting to the good part of adding bells and whistles.

Free e-mail services usually come in one of two categories. The most common are Web-based, which means that you access them through your Internet browser, as opposed to through some special software you have loaded on your computer. The advantage of a Web-based service is that you can log on from any PC with Net access and check your mail from various accounts. But the disadvantage is that it's slower, and many Web-based free e-mail services won't be able to check messages in your AOL e-mail account. The other type of free service is called a Post Office Protocol (POP3) account, and it runs on dedicated e-mail software like the kind you usually get when you subscribe for Internet service. POP3 accounts commonly let you store more messages than Web-based e-mail and usually come with a lot more features, such as easy file attachment and spell checking.

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