4 weird things you can do with Gmail that aren't just sending email

John is a writer at Pocket-lint. He is passionate about all things technology, and is always keeping up with the latest smartphone and PC releases. John has previously written at MobileSyrup. When he’s not reading and writing about tech, he enjoys listening to history podcasts and watching documentaries.

Gmail is the most popular email provider in the world. It's a far-reaching tool as far as virtual mailboxes are concerned, and there's a good chance that you or someone you know is an active user of the service. Gmail has been around since all the way back in 2004, and its popularity has remained steadfast ever since its launch.

By virtue of relying on the cloud, Gmail is an extensible tool -- one that's far more useful than initially meets the eye. Aside from the basic sending and receiving of emails, you can mold Gmail into a productivity tool of sorts, though it takes a bit of finagling to do so. Here are three unconventional uses for Gmail, all of which have nothing to do directly with email proper.

Word processing

Replace Google Docs

Gmail can most certainly be used as a makeshift word processor when in a pinch. The service features a variety of markup tools like bold, italics, underline, font selection and size, text color, alignment, bullet points, hyperlinking, and more. When put together, a new draft email can feasibly be used to write up a basic document, which might come in handy if, say, Microsoft Word isn't installed on your computer. And, with Gmail's cloud-first nature in mind, you can access your draft documents across both your phone and your PC, and from anywhere in the world.

Cloud storage

Replace Google Drive

With Gmail relying on the cloud to synchronize emails, the service can be used as a cloud storage provider of sorts. You can email yourself photo and file attachments, which can then be accessed and downloaded locally via any of your devices. It's clunkier than using a dedicated cloud storage service like Google Drive, to be sure, but it's more than serviceable as a stop-gap solution. And, as an added bonus, it means you don't have to download a separate application to get the job done, which saves on storage space.

Note-taking

Replace Google Keep

Dedicated note-taking applications will always be preferable from a user-interface and a workflow perspective, but Gmail itself is more than capable of slotting in as a note-taker in its own right. You can create new draft emails and use them as individual note pages, and there are plenty of advanced search features for referencing older notes as well. Your draft email notes will then be accessible from any device you have your Gmail signed in to, and the system is perfectly usable for saving ideas, lists, jot notes, and more.

Photo albums

Replace Google Photos

While Google Photos is the more streamlined and user-friendly option, Gmail itself can also be used as a vault for saving your various photos. A Gmail account can be assimilated into a private photo collection of sorts, with the ability to add custom labels and subjects to your email-powered photo album. The flow is surprisingly intuitive, and you can share the email address with friends and family members to add a layer of collaboration into the mix.