This happened back in July and I didn’t even realize it.
Gmail adds ‘My Contacts’ and ‘Suggested Contacts’
Released on 7/16/2008
Gmail now adds people you email with to your contact list after several correspondences, rather than after you email someone for the first time. Contacts you add manually or through an import are also saved in ‘My Contacts’. People you haven’t had many email exchanges with are auto-added to ‘Suggested Contacts’, and you can move those people to ‘My Contacts’ at any time.
I’ve been griping for a long time about the way Contacts are managed in Gmail, which I otherwise love and recommend (especially over Yahoo Mail). This is not the perfect solution to having every address you email get added to your address book, but it’s an improvement in the right direction.
I just don’t understand why they can’t give users an option at the point of sending the email on whether to add the address or not. I still want to see that option, and will again complete the Gmail feature request form.
If you are a Gmail user, that’s where you can suggest features. If you would like to join my crusade for a better Gmail Contacts, look for “More functional Contacts list” on the form and click on everything in that section.