Engadget, Gizmodo, and 9 to 5 Mac seem to be puzzled about an app called BDEmailer, and why it’s allowed on the App Store. I think this is because they’re giving the app more credit than it’s due.

Engadget says Apple “violates its own policies” because the app’s SMTP feature “duplicates an exact function of Apple’s Mail application on the iPhone and touch.” I disagree. The product’s own demo video states that if “there’s more than two [email addresses] it will send them to Apple’s Mail, the SMT[P] only sends one address at a time.” That’s hardly a duplicate of Mail’s send feature. 

Gizmodo says Apple’s app store policies are a “crap shoot.” This may very well be true, but I’m not sure you could prove it by this app. They want to know “just what the hell is going on.” Well, what’s going on is this: BDEmailer is an enhancement to Apple’s Mail, and there are already plenty of those on the app store (e.g., Easy Mail, TouchType).

9 to 5 Mac says the app “goes up against Apple’s own email app,” which is the furthest from the truth because this app relies on Apple’s Mail app. 

In addition to SMTP, I believe some confusion stems from the app’s write-up in the app store. It talks so much about what you can do, it can give the impression it’s a Mail replacement. But it does not receive mail, and the limited sending is obviously an issue. Bottom line is that while this Mail enhancer seems more extensive than others — which duplicate some of BDEmailer’s features — it’s still just a Mail add-on, not a replacement.

Finally, none of this is meant to judge the app itself, or its potential usefulness as a Mail helper. This is not a review; I leave it to readers to use the app or read existing app store reviews and make their own determination. I’m simply responding to articles questioning why Apple did not disallow this app from the Store.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
Subscriber content. Sign up for a free trial.

• How to Market Your iPhone App: A Developer’s Guide
• Virtual Worlds: Trends and Opportunities