However, while Lion's version of Mail lets you apply one of eight different flag colors, iOS 5's Mail supports only a single flag type. If you're using Lion's multiple flags, our testing shows inconsistent results when viewing such flagged messages in iOS 5: When you apply a flag to a message on your iOS device, that message shows up with a red flag in Lion Mail. But when you apply a flag other than red in Lion Mail, sometimes the message will display a red flag in iOS Mail, and sometimes it won't display a flag at all. We suspect this is an issue Apple will be ironing out in a future update to iOS 5.

The other welcome feature, related to both flags and message status, is that you can now change the read status of multiple messages, and flag and unflag multiple messages, simultaneously. When viewing any message list, tap the Edit button and then tap each message for which you want to change status; a white-on-red checkmark appears next to each message you select. Tap Mark, and you can then tap Flag (or Unflag) to change the messages' flagged status, or tap Mark As Read (or Unread) to change the messages' read status.

Another welcome feature iOS 5 brings to Mail is basic mailbox management for IMAP and Exchange accounts. When viewing the mailbox list for an individual account, tap the Edit button at the top of the list. You immediately notice a New Mailbox button at the bottom of the list. Tap this button, and you can give the new mailbox (folder) a name; you can even decide where in that account's mailbox hierarchy--at the root level, or inside another mailbox--the new mailbox should reside. Tap Save and the new mailbox immediately appears in the account. Tap Done to exit Edit mode.

But you can also edit existing mailboxes. While in Edit mode, tap a mailbox and you get options to rename the mailbox, move it to a different location within the account (you can't move a mailbox between accounts), or delete it (along with all messages it contains!). Tap Save when you've finished, or Cancel to cancel the changes.