• by Jess Nelson , May 5, 2017

Newton Mail has extended its email application to Alexa, effectively allowing users to manage their email inbox hands-free.

Alexa is Amazon’s intelligent virtual assistant that powers the company’s smart speakers, Echo. Customers can now ask Alexa to check their inbox for any news messages, respond to emails, or snooze communication until later, without the need to a type a single key.  

“Too busy or too lazy to get to Newton on your phone but want to quickly catch up with your emails?,” asks Umesh Gopinath, design at Newton Mail, in a blog post announcing the news. “Just ask Alexa. The Newton skill on Alexa will now make you stay on top of your emails without having to reach for your phone or computer.”

Hands-free email may seem too good to be true -- particularly for the three million Americans inflicted with carpal tunnel syndrome. There is a catch: Newton Mail is a subscription-based email application that costs $50 a year.

Newton Mail syncs notifications from any email accounts on any device, but for a price. Additional features include snooze, read receipts, send later and undo send.

Newton Mail also has a number of integrations with productivity apps, allowing users to save emails on third-party applications like Evernote, Zendesk, OneNote, and Salesforce. The email application also provides sender profile information, including details from LinkedIn and Twitter, to help personalize replies.