Downloaded msgs. come infrequently, in batches.

[GregS]

I'm using Windows 10 and Outlook 2016. My ISP is Time Warner, and I have a second account for Outlook.com
in order to sync my messages with iPhone.
Example of the problem would be renewing a password. The site says "..sending to your inbox...". In my case it may be literally more than an hour later before I see the message and then the original site has timed out. Messages primarily come in batches of as many as 12-15 with time stamps ranging from nearly the time of the batch arrival to perhaps two or more hours earlier. This while the Outlook is running continuously in either background or foreground.
Where do I point the finger of suspicion in this situation? ISP, Outlook, my own settings? Should I give up and port my entire mail to Outlook.com? Curiously, my iPhone seems to download sooner than Outlook in some instances.

 

[Diane Poremsky]

Is the outlook.com account collecting mail from TW? There is a 30 min to 1 hour delay in it checking for new mail. Use the web interface instead.

If a pop account is set up in Outlook, check the send and receive settings - it should be set to somewhere between 5 and 8 minutes but the default is 30 minutes. Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open the dialog.

 

[GregS]

Thank you, Diane. In my Outlook 2016 file settings, the Outlook.com account is connected to the server "eas.outlook.com".
It is an an Exchange Active Sync account. My intent is to have Outlook.com mirror what is received in Outlook 2016. That seems to be working correctly. My "main" account is IMAP/SMTP account pointed at hawaii.rr.com. Should it be a POP account, or does that depend on TW?
Finally, I'm not sure what you mean by "use the web interface instead". I have a folder in '16 that receives from Outlook.com, and I can also go the Mail via my browser and view messages there. How could I try making Mail my principal send/receive source, if that might improve the situation?

 

[Diane Poremsky]

In my Outlook 2016 file settings, the Outlook.com account is connected to the server "eas.outlook.com".

Well, this is a problem - they turned EAS off over the last 2 months - nothing should be syncing to those folders. Add the account using autoaccount setup - this should add it as a Microsoft Exchange account. Compare the calendar & contacts with your EAS account's folders and drag over items not in the Exchange folders. Then delete the EAS account.
Outlook.com: Switch Account to Microsoft Exchange Now

My "main" account is IMAP/SMTP account pointed at hawaii.rr.com. Should it be a POP account, or does that depend on TW?

IMAP is recommended. This syncs everything between outlook and the server and all computer will have the same content - it's similar to an exchange account but for email only.

Finally, I'm not sure what you mean by "use the web interface instead".

You can log into outlook.com to access email, calendar, contacts. While most outlook users would only do it in an emergency, if you think mail isn't working, going to outlook.com to confirm if there is new content not synced can be helpful.