Can you set up email on my phone and tablet as well as my computer?

Yes. Fixable sets up email on every device during the visit — computer, phone and tablet — so everything stays in sync. You send from one device and see it on all the others. Most Melbourne households have three or more devices that should all be connected to the same email account.

Email Help · Melbourne

Email Not Working in Melbourne? Here’s What’s Gone Wrong

Name: Fixable
Address: Melbourne, VIC, AU
Telephone: +61435955429
Price range: $89/hr

Outlook stopped syncing. Gmail won’t load. Your Bigpond email disappeared after switching providers. Fixable visits your home and gets email working properly — on every device — before we leave.

Outlook & Microsoft 365 Gmail Bigpond & Telstra iCloud Mail All Melbourne suburbs

Updated April 2026 6 min read Provider-specific fixes inside

Email is the one thing that absolutely has to work. Medical appointments. Banking alerts. Messages from family. When it stops — especially without warning — it causes real stress.

Most email problems in Melbourne homes are not complicated. They just need someone who knows exactly what to look for. Wrong password. Changed server settings. App that needs updating. Account that needs reverification. Fixable fixes these every week across the eastern suburbs.

Find your exact problem first

Email stopped working after getting a new computer

Email accounts need to be set up fresh on the new machine — they don’t transfer automatically. Most common setup gap in Melbourne homes

→ Jump to: Setting up email on a new computer

Outlook stopped sending or receiving — no error message

Usually a Microsoft account that needs re-signing in, or an Outlook profile that’s become corrupted. Very common after Windows updates

→ Jump to: Outlook fixes

Bigpond or Telstra email disappeared after switching providers

Telstra changed its email infrastructure. Many older Bigpond accounts need new server settings to keep working — even if you’re still a Telstra customer

→ Jump to: Bigpond email fixes

Email works on the computer but not on the phone or tablet

The account is connected on one device but not configured on others. Each device needs its own setup

→ Jump to: Syncing across devices

Inbox full of scam emails — or worried you clicked something you shouldn’t

Email scams are the most common way Melbourne residents get hacked. Fixable covers scam recognition and account security as part of every visit

→ Jump to: Email scam protection

How email actually works — and why it breaks

Most people think of email as just “the internet.” But your email travels through several steps. When any one step breaks, the whole thing stops.

How your email travels — and where it can break

Email breaks at two points: your app or password settings, or the email provider’s server settings. Both are fixable — but you need to know which one it is first.

Fix by provider — Outlook, Gmail, Bigpond, iCloud

📧

Outlook & Microsoft 365

Outlook 2016, 2019, 2021, Microsoft 365 (Office 365)

Outlook is the most common email client Fixable fixes across Melbourne. It breaks most often after Windows updates, Microsoft account password changes, or when a new computer doesn’t have the account reconnected properly.

Open Outlook → look for a yellow bar at the top saying “Disconnected” or “Need password” — click it and re-enter your Microsoft password
If no bar appears, go to File → Account Settings → repair the account
If repair doesn’t work, remove the account from Outlook and re-add it — this forces a fresh connection to Microsoft’s servers
If Outlook keeps asking for your password repeatedly, go to Control Panel → Credential Manager → remove any saved Outlook credentials, then restart Outlook

💡 Microsoft 365 tip: If you’re on a Microsoft 365 subscription, your Outlook licence is tied to your Microsoft account — not to the computer. When you get a new computer, you don’t need to buy Office again. Sign in with the same Microsoft account and the full Office suite activates automatically.

📬

Gmail (Google Account)

Gmail app · Google Workspace · Gmail in Outlook

Gmail itself rarely breaks — but setting it up correctly in Outlook or Apple Mail is tricky. Google changed its security settings in 2022 and again in 2024, blocking many older email apps from connecting directly.

If using Gmail in a browser — just go to gmail.com. If it won’t sign in, use “Forgot password” to reset it.
If using Gmail in Outlook or Apple Mail — you need to generate a Google App Password. Go to your Google Account → Security → 2-Step Verification → App passwords. Generate one and use it instead of your regular Gmail password.
If Gmail is on your phone but not your computer — add it via Outlook or Apple Mail using the App Password method above.

⚠️ Don’t use your regular Gmail password in Outlook — Google now blocks this. It will appear to connect briefly then fail with a mysterious error. Always use an App Password for Outlook and Mail apps.

📮

Bigpond & Telstra Email

@bigpond.com · @bigpond.net.au · @telstra.com

Bigpond email is one of the most common email problems Fixable fixes in Melbourne — particularly for older residents who have used the same Bigpond address for 15 or 20 years.

Telstra migrated its email infrastructure and changed its server settings. Many accounts that worked for years suddenly stopped because Outlook or Mail was still pointed at the old server addresses.

The correct Bigpond/Telstra server settings as of 2026:

Incoming (IMAP): imap.telstra.com — Port 993 — SSL/TLS
Outgoing (SMTP): smtp.telstra.com — Port 465 — SSL/TLS
Username: your full email address (including @bigpond.com)

Real story — Doncaster: A woman in her 70s had used her bigpond.com address for 18 years. After switching to Aussie Broadband, it stopped working. She thought changing providers meant losing her email address. It didn’t — the address still exists with Telstra. We updated the server settings in Outlook and she was back in her inbox within 20 minutes. Eighteen years of emails, still there.

☁️

iCloud Mail (Apple)

@icloud.com · @me.com · @mac.com

iCloud Mail works well on Apple devices but causes problems when accessed in Outlook or Windows Mail. Apple requires App-Specific Passwords for third-party apps — similar to Gmail.

On iPhone/iPad/Mac — iCloud Mail usually works automatically if you’re signed into the same Apple ID. Check Settings → Mail → Accounts.
In Outlook on Windows — go to appleid.apple.com → Sign In & Security → App-Specific Passwords. Generate one and use it as the password when setting up iCloud Mail in Outlook.
If iCloud Mail is on one device but not others — sign in to the same Apple ID on each device and enable Mail in iCloud settings.

Getting email working on all your devices

Most Melbourne households have three or four devices that should all show the same emails. Computer, phone, tablet — sometimes a second computer as well.

The key is using IMAP rather than POP3. Here’s the difference:

IMAP vs POP3 — the plain English version: IMAP keeps your emails on the server and mirrors them to every device. Delete an email on your phone and it disappears everywhere. POP3 downloads emails to one device and removes them from the server — so you only see them on that one machine. Almost everyone in Melbourne should be using IMAP. If your emails only appear on one device, you’re probably on POP3.

Real story — Surrey Hills: A man retired from his accounting practice and set up a home office. His work emails had always been on POP3 — fine for a single office PC. At home, his laptop had emails but his phone had none. His wife’s computer had none either. We switched the account to IMAP on all three devices. Within an hour, all five years of archived emails appeared on every device simultaneously. He called it a miracle. It was just the right setting.

Protecting your email from scams in Melbourne

Email scams are the single most common way Melbourne residents get hacked. Fixable covers this as part of every email visit — not as an add-on.

Here’s a quick reference for what’s real and what’s a scam:

What it says	Likely real or scam?	What to do
“Your Australia Post parcel needs a fee”	Scam	Delete. Australia Post never emails payment requests.
“Your Microsoft account will be suspended”	Almost always a scam	Go directly to account.microsoft.com — don’t click the email link.
“Your Medicare account needs verification”	Scam	Delete. Medicare never emails verification requests.
“Your Telstra bill is ready”	Usually real	Check the sender address ends in @telstra.com — then it’s safe to click.
“Unusual sign-in activity on your Google account”	Usually real	Go directly to myaccount.google.com to check — don’t use the email link.
“You’ve been selected for a $500 gift card”	Scam	Delete immediately. No one gives away gift cards by email.

⚠️ If you already clicked a suspicious link: Don’t panic. Change your email password immediately from a different device. Check your sent folder for emails you didn’t send. Then call Fixable — we can check whether anything was compromised and secure the account properly.

Frequently asked questions

Why has my email stopped working in Melbourne?

Most common causes are a changed or expired password, an Outlook or Mail app that needs updating after a Windows update, incorrect server settings after switching internet providers, or a Microsoft or Google account that needs re-verification. Fixable identifies the exact cause within the first 15 minutes of arriving.

Can you set up Outlook in Melbourne?

Yes. Fixable sets up and fixes Outlook across Melbourne homes every week — connecting accounts, activating Microsoft 365, transferring email history from old computers, fixing sync errors, and making Outlook work consistently across computers, phones and tablets.

My Bigpond or Telstra email has stopped working — can you fix it?

Yes. Bigpond email is one of the most common jobs we attend in Melbourne. Telstra changed its server settings and many accounts that worked for years suddenly stopped. We update the server settings in your email app — usually fixed within 20 minutes — and your old emails are still there.

Can you set up email on my phone and tablet as well?

Yes. Fixable sets up email on every device during the visit so everything stays in sync. You see the same emails everywhere, and sending from one device updates all the others. Most Melbourne households have three or more devices that should be connected to the same account.

How do I know if an email is a scam?

The main signs are urgent demands to act immediately, sender addresses that don’t match the organisation they claim to be from, links that go somewhere unexpected, and requests for passwords, bank details or gift cards. Fixable covers email scam recognition as part of every email setup visit.

How much does email setup cost in Melbourne?

$89 per hour, no call-out fee. Most email setup visits take 45 to 90 minutes. If multiple devices need setting up or email history needs to be transferred from an old computer, allow up to two hours. We give you an honest estimate when we arrive.