Mobile Browsing

Browsers January 10, 2008

With the explosion of mobile technology in the last year - first with the Blackberry, then the iPhone and now a slew of touch-screen-type phones with Windows Mobile and what not - we're drastically changing the way we use the Internet.

Originally, the Internet was a place to house information which everyone could access without downloading a piece of software. We then moved into dynamic content where information could be changed and updated, creating more frequent traffic to sites. Next we added the social component, allowing people to connect through various forms of media (photos, news, video, music, etc.).

Popular social network sites now have become quite complicated in their functionality and interface. But because these mobile phones have limited space on their screen, we see that this type of fully-used UI is not the way to go anymore.

Suddenly, it's like we've almost been thrown back to Web 1.0 whereby we want to use the Internet to get information fast. When we're on the go, our Internet goals are different than if we were leisurely sitting at our home or office computer. We want to do things quickly, whether it be find an address, look up a word's definition, check email, read a news feed, get contact info from a site, etc.

Sites made for the mobile phone need not over-clutter with dozens of UI features. Rather the opposite is needed: a total reconstruction which highlights only the pieces that are absolutely necessary, allowing users to find what they're looking for as fast and easy as possible.

Search boxes, quick lists, large buttons and less text have become popular in mobile interface design. No flashy ad banners, no miscellaneous links and content. Quick and to the point. And yet if mobile technology continues to skyrocket in popularity, the ad agencies are going to have to come up with a new way to advertise online - we only have so much space on the screen!

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