Gmail Users Bring Renewed Attention to Issue With Apple's Mail App Popping Open Sporadically on Mac
In a blog post shared on Reddit, software engineer Philipp Defner has brought renewed attention to a years-old issue that results in Apple's Mail app randomly popping open as the frontmost application on the Mac.

"If you are in full screen mode — like when you are giving a talk or watching a movie — it opens itself up in split view mode where it takes up half the screen while your other main window is being resized," wrote Defner, in line with similar comments shared across the MacRumors Forums, Apple Support Communities, and elsewhere.
The issue appears to be related to a potential connectivity or syncing issue with certain Gmail accounts, with some users noting that creating an app-specific password for your Gmail account is an effective workaround. Other users simply keep the Mail app minimized in the Dock instead of closed entirely to avoid it from popping open sporadically.
Defner notes that the issue has been occurring since at least macOS Sierra and continues in macOS Catalina. Affected users are hopeful that Apple can implement a fix, although it is unclear if there is anything it can do on its end.
Popular Stories
Social network Reddit recently began blocking mobile visitors to its website while pushing them to download the official Reddit app, and it's fair to say that the move is not going down well with users.
If you visit reddit.com on your iPhone today, you may see a new popup that can't be dismissed, asking you to "get the app to keep using Reddit."
A Reddit spokesperson told Ars Technica...
Apple today released iOS 26.5 and iPadOS 26.5, the newest updates to the iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 operating systems. The software comes nearly two months after Apple released iOS 26.4 and iPadOS 26.4.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. Apple has also released iOS 15.8.8, iOS 16.7.16, iOS 18.7.9, and...
We're only four months out from the launch of Apple's premium next-generation smartphone lineup, and while we're not expecting a sea change in terms of functionality, there are still several enhancements rumored to be coming to the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
One thing worth noting is that Apple is reportedly planning a major change to its iPhone release cycle this year, adopting a...