Update: Google has pulled Gmail from the iOS App Store. It should make its return in the near future.
It’s been more than three years since Apple opened the App Store for business. While Google has launched plenty of iPhone and iPad Apps, the developers are just getting around to releasing a native Gmail app for the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.
While the current mobile web app is pretty good, the native application is faster, sleeker, and adds numerous new features not found in the web app.
The Gmail app supports push notifications and audio alerts, and allows users to autocomplete addresses by grabbing contacts from your local address book in addition to your Gmail account.
It also supports touch based gestures, including the common ability to refresh the inbox by pulling down on the screen. Users can swipe from left to right to navigate through folders and settings. The native app also lets users attach images and other multimedia to email messages.
You can download the native Gmail app for free from the App Store.