After rejecting the Podcaster app for duplicating iTunes functionality, Apple has gone and done it again. This time it's Mail Wrangler, an app by Angelo DiNardi that has been rejected from the App Store because it "duplicates the functionality of the built-in iPhone application Mail," Apple said in an email.
According to DiNardi, MailWrangler was an app that allowed users to easily access and toggle between gmail accounts.
Apple's correspondence went on to say that MailWrangler didn't have "sufficient differentiation or added features, which will lead to user confusion." However, DiNardi says his app would allow threaded email views and access to google contacts, which are major functionality components that are lacking from the current native Mail app (though the ability to search might be even better!).
DiNardi reserves the end of his blog post for some Apple zingers: "I guess I should just write another flashlight or glowstick application to actually get published. That’s the only apps Apple seems to want in the store.”
With the first Google Android phone slated for launch this coming Tuesday, it'll be interesting to see if a completely open development platform can be leveraged to make inroads on the iPhone's market share.
