Opera Mini: one of the best new browsers coming later this year
While there are advantages to browsing mobile sites on a mobile phone, the current focus in mobile browser development is on bringing a complete, desktop-like Web experience to your handset.
Built-in browsers on handsets to date have included proprietary browsers often incapable of a rich Web experience, but we are starting to see a shift towards mobile browsers developed by some of the big players in the desktop browser space; namely Opera and Firefox, who both have exciting new software coming to handsets later this year.
Some of the exciting advancements to look forward to include;
Web 2.0/xHTML capability: No longer should images fail to load or pages fail to render correctly. Web 2.0 capable means being able to view Websites on your mobile as if you were in front of a PC. Users will have the option to view a full page or a "small screen" version.
Intuitive navigation: One of the big drawcards for these new browsers is easy-to-use zooming features. Mobile sites often wrap the content of a site into a single column, making it easier to display on smaller screens. Zooming features will let you zoom out, pan and scan over a full page to find a point of interest, then zoom back in for a closer look.
Tabbed browsing: As with desktop browsers, tabbed browsing for the mobile Web was a necessary, and inevitable, step forward. The latest Opera Mini, Firefox, and Skyfire browsers all include tabbed browsing.
Handset integration: An exciting concept for mobile browsing is the ability to integrate the phone's features, like contact lists, onboard camera, and GPS receiver with the browsing experience.
Image saving/text selection: Common desktop functions like being able to save an image and copy text are soon to be common functions in mobile browsers. Being able to send a pic you find with MMS, or dial a number you find online will no doubt be very handy.
A nifty alternative to the big players is the TeaShark mobile browser. Unlike Opera and Firefox which require either the Windows Mobile or Symbian operating platform to work, TeaShark runs as a Java application, meaning it can run on any phone that supports Java. Teashark also features the same great experience, including zooming navigation and tabbed browsing.
canberra_photographer
17/04/2008 10:21 PM
Someone forgot You Tube Mobile, compatible with most 3G phones
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Joseph_Hanlon
18/04/2008 12:02 PM
Actually c_p no one forgot Youtube Mobile, I just don't rate it. There are plenty mobile sites I've left off the list.
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