It definitely is. That was the deal you made to use gmail, that’s been the case since the start. The user agreement is very up front about that.

What I mean is, is that where gmail is concerned, that trade is still one I’m willing to make. It provides enough for me to agree to hand over the snapshot of me that is my email traffic.

With chrome, not so much. Chrome does very little to provide me with some kind of value other browsers dont, and yet it asks for everything I do online. Not just the account confirmation messages I use my email to receive. Gmail can see if I have pornhub account. Chrome can log every webpage I’ve ever opened. There’s a difference.

Email is central for all online activity, and google is really good at it, and provides it for “free”, at a rate that’s “competitive”.

A lot of googles other services, very much aren’t.

I’m still on gmail. It’s one of the few services I genuinely think google is still doing correctly.

But, a good way to switch, would be to get another email address, then link it to gmail, or gmail to it (via smpt and pop3/imap) and slowly start swithing all your stuff over while using both for while. The link will bring everything into one single inbox for you.

I still have two pre-gmail inboxes routes ilto my gmail this way, they never get mail anymore, but you don’t need to entirely cut those inboxes off.