These still exist and you can still create one today from the new account flow, by clicking the option to use your own email address when they ask what Gmail address you'd like.
This would seem to be a viable model for ex-gapps accounts, although a regular "non Gmail Google account" still has access to Google calendar and drive and other tools that ex-gapps users seem to be denied access to. That becomes an interesting disparity.
This would seem to be a viable model for ex-gapps accounts, although a regular "non Gmail Google account" still has access to Google calendar and drive and other tools that ex-gapps users seem to be denied access to. That becomes an interesting disparity.