I can read my email on my phone, and also get it to notify me when I get a new one from a particular address. It's not as easy as installing an app, but it's really not that hard either.
mmmhmmm, indeed. You need to consider the mentality of the people who chose to live this way. Most don't want want to type an address into a browser, ever, they want to tap an app.
I don't think it's anything to do typing the address. It's that there are a lot of people out there who don't understand what a web browser really is, how a web page is distinguished from an app, or how to get something from a web browser to their home screen.
See also: people who copy and paste images into Word documents before attaching them to emails. Same mental model disconnect.
For sure, I was using a simplistic description. My point is that my experience (and it's just my experience) is that many people don't care to understand what a browser is or how to use it properly, they want apps. I stress this is just my experience but I'm one of those people who tries to (unsuccessfully) teach them. They just don't care (though I'm probably a bad teacher).
And yes, see also people who print emails so they can scan them XD
